Explainer - Green Climate Fund

• The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has approved a total of $52.5 million for a cross-cutting project to be implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), together with the government of Fiji and partners.

• It aims to strengthen climate adaptation and resilience across landscapes and communities in Fiji while supporting low-carbon development pathways.

• The financing is divided into a $29.3 million GCF grant and $23.2 million in co-financing. 

How will it benefit the country?

• Fiji is an island nation of more than 300 islands in the South Pacific Ocean, where forests, agricultural lands, rivers and coastal ecosystems form an interconnected ridge-to-reef system. 

• Tropical forests cover 60 per cent of the land and provide critical habitat for unique biodiversity, while preventing soil erosion and protecting vital coastal ecosystems such as coral reefs, seagrass beds and mangroves from harmful run-off.

• However, environmental degradation and climate change are posing a growing threat to people’s livelihoods and resources.

• Unsustainable land use, logging and mangrove clearing have led to soil erosion, forest degradation and flooding. 

• At the same time, stronger cyclones, heavier rainfall, rising sea levels, longer dry spells and more frequent wildfires are intensifying these pressures.

• The seven-year Forest Landscape Restoration for Climate Benefits and Resilience (Fiji FLR) project will reach 196,877 beneficiaries (half of whom are women), while a further 149,715 people will benefit indirectly. 

• The project will help restore degraded landscapes, protect coastal ecosystems and improve forest and agricultural land management. 

• Key partners include Fiji Hardwood Corporation Limited, Fiji Pine Limited, Fiji Development Bank and local communities.

• Fiji FLR project will reduce the climate vulnerability of rural communities that depend on farming, livestock production, forestry or fisheries for their livelihoods.

• More than 80,000 hectares of forest and agricultural land are set to be restored and placed under improved management, while more than 90,000 hectares of coastal ecosystems will be protected. 

• These actions will help mitigate climate change by removing 6 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent from the atmosphere.

• Beyond Fiji, the project offers a replicable model for other Small Island Developing States by combining policy reform, community-based planning and sustainable finance, which can be adapted to address shared challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss and climate risk.

• Fiji FLR is part of FAO’s $2 billion portfolio of GCF projects, serving more than 60 million people across 99 countries.

What is Green Climate Fund?

• The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is the world’s largest dedicated climate fund, created to address the climate crisis. 

• It was established by the 194 parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2010.

• GCF aims to expand collective human action to respond to climate change. 

• It mobilises funding at scale to invest in low-emission and climate-resilient development on our home planet. 

• The Fund supports developing countries in achieving their climate ambitions and plays a key role in implementing the Paris Agreement. 

• GCF is designed as an operating entity of the Convention’s financial mechanism and is headquartered in South Korea.

• It is governed by a 24-member Board of Country Representatives and receives guidance from the Convention's Conference of Parties (COP). 

• It allocates its resources to low-emission and climate-resilient projects and programmes in developing countries. 

• GCF has a portfolio of 353 projects worth $20 billion delivering transformative climate action in 133 developing countries.

• The GCF focuses on the needs of societies that are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, in particular Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDS), and African States. 

India and GCF

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has been designated as the National Designated Authority (NDA) of India for GCF and the Climate Change Division of MoEFCC functions as the contact point for GCF.

• So far, 15 projects/programmes have been approved for India with a total allocation of $1.1 billion to mitigate and adapt to climate change in sectors including water, clean energy, coastal, livelihood, transport, medium and small enterprises and climate startups. 

• Each project/programme has respective timelines and disbursement. 

• GCF projects/programmes covers climate adaptation and resilience result areas that include livelihoods of people & communities, health, food, water security, and ecosystem & ecosystem services.