Brief Notes from Green Climate Fund's 27th Board Meeting

 

Prepared by Abraham Sumalinog

GCF B27 Day 1

The Co-chairs, Sue Szabo (Canada) and Nauman Bhatti (Pakistan) welcomed the Board to its second virtual board meeting, scheduled to run 4 hours a day via Zoom until 13 November 2020. The recorded meeting is available online here. 

Adoption of the B27 Agenda

• BMs worry that the Updated Strategic Plan (USP), although proposed for adoption at this Board Meeting, is still not ready due to lack of documentation.
• policy gaps: include the Integrated Results Management Framework (IRMF), the Updated Strategic Plan (USP), and the Project-Specific Assessment Approach (PSAA)
• urged the Board to make decisive actions now, with emphasis on the adoption of the IRMF
• Co-chair assured the Board that the USP and the IRMF would be tabled at this Board Meeting

Adoption of the B26 Report and the Board Decisions Proposed Between Meetings (B26-B27)

• decisions proposed to the Board between B26 and B27, namely: 

1. Appointment of the ethics and audit committee chairs
2. Appointment of External Auditors, and
3. Performance Review and Accreditation of Observer Organizations--all of which were recorded as decisions under B27

• Except for the Performance Review and Accreditation of Observer Organizations, the Board adopted all proposed items

Report on the Activities of the Secretariat

Yannick Glemarec presented his report on the activities of the Secretariat

Six (6) priority areas that the Secretariat undertook (July to September 2020). 

1. Strengthening country-driven planning to originate and deliver high-quality, innovative, and scalable investments;
2. Galvanizing engagement with Accredited Entities (AEs);
3. Flipping Key Gaps in GCF Policy and Governance Frameworks;
4. Reducing Engagement Costs and Time to Funding by Improving the Efficiency, Effectiveness, and Transparency of the GCF Process and the Speed of Delivery;
5. Adopting Adaptive Management Portfolio Implementation and Strengthening the GCF Results Management; and
6. Consolidating Institutional Capacities and Taking Initial Steps to Position the GCF to be a Global Knowledge Hub and Policy Influencer in Climate Finance 

• less than one-third will be moderately or severely affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic 
• Secretariat is currently on track to achieve eighty percent (80%) of its targets. 
• expects to achieve at least ninety percent (90%) by the end of the year.

Policy gaps that need to be addressed:

1. Sexual Exploitation and Harassment (SEAH) policy of the Fund-expected to be implemented before B28, 
2. the issue around securing Privileges and Immunities (P&I) of the Fund (be absent in 69 countries

There is a 55% reduction in processing days of funding proposal submissions to approval and a 22% reduction from approval to funds disbursement. 

Fund replenishment under GCF-1 will cross the USD 10 billion replenishment target:

• 50,000 Swiss francs from Liechtenstein
• 100 Million Euros from Austria
• 3 Million USD contributions from Qatar and 1 Million USD from the Brussel province (still to be finalized) 

Several policies that need board adoption remain pending USP, IRMF, issues around P&Is, and the review of the Simplified Approval Process (SAP)) are crucial to the Fund's future activities

On the other hand, BMs from the developing countries raised issues around the accessibility of the Fund, achieving funding commitments, and some logistical challenges in attending the virtual meetings. 

Other issues: 

• need to accelerate mechanisms that will increase DAE accreditation 
• the commitments to sign pledges by contributor countries 
• ensure management of labor disputes and include this in the grievance mechanisms implemented

Reports from Board Committees, Panels, and Groups

• a number of issues regarding the lack of decorum of the BMs in many meetings - negatively impacted the committees' functions and effectiveness.
• on the role of the Independent Technical Advisory Panel (ITAP) -- questioned how the ITAP operates and who has oversight responsibility for it
• a BM said that the ITAP's lack of attentiveness has caused several FPs to not reach the Board for consideration 
• this issue must be considered a priority and urged the Board to do the review of the ITAP urgently 
• An ITAP member stated that they were tasked to serve as the gatekeeper of FPs from the Board
• The ITAP reassures the Board that they will function based on the purview of the Board.

Report on the Activities of the Independent Units

• Independent Redress Mechanism (IRM) presented the appeal of the CSO Active Observer (AO) Team 
• Last May 2020, the CSO AO Team requested the Secretariat to disclose information on FPs, which are expected to be discussed in B26 and B27
• The IAP recommended that the requested information be disclosed, but the Fund's Executive Director rejected this. 
• Two BMs stated that information disclosure must be the default practice
• They emphasized that transparency and inclusiveness are among the principles which the GCF stands for
• Active Observer intervention: expressing the dismay of the CSOs at the rejection of the appeal and the dismissal of the IAP recommendation; there is no reasonable explanation for such information to be tagged as confidential. 

2nd and 3rd Day of GCF BM.27

Status of GCF resources, pipeline and portfolio performance

• additional contributions that were noted by the Secretariat since the last Board Meeting and these are from Liechtenstein (50,000 CHF) and Austria (USD 100 million), and contributions that are to be finalized from the Qatar Fund 
• a great chance that the USD 10 billion targets of total committed pledges will be achieved by the end of this year. 
• currently, the total amount delivered under GCF-1 is USD 3.8 billion

 Overall portfolio:

• a total of USD 6.2 billion has been allocated to 143 approved funding proposals, 
• around USD 22 billion for 441 projects in the pipeline
• approved projects: 53% of grant funding falls under the theme of adaptation, while 47% for mitigation
• the fund portfolio is skewed to favor mitigation projects at 61% over adaptation projects at 39% of total GCF Funding

International Access Entities (IAEs) over Direct Access Entities (DAEs): the latter receiving 79% of GCF funding and the former at 21% only

Some developed country BMs recognized the improvement of the Fund portfolio after seeing increased interest in REDD+ projects

Other comments of the Board sought clarity on the compliance of gender policy of the 143 projects approved, to which the Secretariat responded that 13 approved funding proposals are currently on hold because their gender action plans are yet to be finalized

9th Report of the Green Climate Fund to the Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC

• Some BMs highlighted the impartiality of the report as it failed to capture how the Fund is underperforming, especially in terms of filling the policy gaps
• the Board had disagreements on what to report to the COP, while some urged to approve the report, which was done later on

Consideration of Funding Proposals

• 16 Funding Proposals - equivalent to a total of USD 1 billion of GCF funding
• Of the 16, 10 are public sector projects, including 3 projects under the Simplified Approval Process (SAP)
• skewed towards mitigation at 81% equivalent to USD 821.12 million, and 19% to adaptation for only USD 190 million GCF funding
• majority of the projects (11 out of 16) are from IAEs, while only 5 are from DAEs

CSO Active Observer Intervention: 

1. highlighted our concerns about the limited information shared on Private Sector proposals and the vague definition and scope of MSMEs for those FPs promoting medium-small sized businesses. 
2. It is a crucial concern regarding some projects' governance structures and potential conflict of interest for those whose AEs are also the project's Executing Entities, or those whose NDAs also serves as the executing entity. 
3. NDAs are expected to apply due diligence and oversight in the issuance of No Objection Letters for projects submitted to the GCF

Funding Proposals (FPs)

SAP017: Climate Proofing Food Production Investments in Imbo and Moso in the Republic of Burundi

• Accredited Entity: IFAD
• Total project financing: USD 31.7 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 9.9 million (grant)
• Co-financing: USD 21.72 million (grant) from IFAD (Approved)

SAP018: Enhancing Climate Information Systems for Resilient Development in Liberia (Liberia CIS)

• Accredited Entity: AfDB
• Total project financing: USD 11.43 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 10 million (grant)
• Co-financing: USD 1 million from GoL (in-kind), USD 0.43 million from AfDB (grant) APPROVED 

SAP019: Gums for Adaptation and Mitigation in Sudan: Enhancing adaptive capacity of local communities and restoring carbon sink potential of the Gum Arabic belt, expanding Africa's Great Green Wall

• Accredited Entity: FAO
• Total project financing: USD 9.975 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 9.97 million (grant). DELIBERATION SUSPENDED FOR LATER

FP141: Improving Adaptive Capacity and Risk Management of Rural Communities in Mongolia

• Accredited Entity: UNDP
• Total project financing: USD 79.3 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 23.1 million (grant)
• Co-financing: USD 20 million from MET, USD 3 million from NEMA, USD 33.2 million from MoFALI. APPROVED

FP142: Argentina REDD+ RBP for 2014-2016

• Accredited Entity: FAO
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 82 million (RBP). 
• APPROVED

FP143: Planting Climate Resilience in Rural Communities of the Northeast (PCRP)

• Accredited Entity: IFAD
• Total project financing: USD 201.5 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 99.5 million (65 million loans, 34.5 million grant)
• Co-financing: USD 30 million from IFAD (loan), USD 59.8 million from BNDES (loan), USD 13.72 million from participating states (cash or in-kind). APPROVED

FP144: Costa Rica REDD+ RBP for 2014-2015

• Accredited Entity: UNDP
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 54.2 million (RBP)
• There were no significant comments from the Board; thus, the FP was approved.

FP145: RELIVE - Resilient Livelihoods of vulnerable smallholder farmers in the Mayan landscapes and the Dry Corridor of Guatemala

• Accredited Entity: FAO
• Total project financing: USD 66.68 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 29.84 million (grant)
• Co-financing: USD 7 million from Korea International Cooperation Agency (grant), USD 5.74 million from MAGA (cash or in-kind), USD 24.10 million from INAB (grant) APPROVED

FP146: Bio-CLIMA: Integrated climate action to reduce deforestation and strengthen resilience in BOSAWAS and Rio San Juan Biospheres

• Accredited Entity: CABEI
• Total financing: USD 115.7 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 26.1 million (grant) and USD 37.9 million (loan)
• Co-financing: USD 19 million from CABEI (loan), USD 24.3 million from FCPF RBP (RBP), USD 8.3 million from GEF-7 (grant). DELIBERATION SUSPENDED FOR LATER

FP147: Enhancing Climate Information and Knowledge Services for resilience in 5 island countries of the Pacific Ocean

• Accredited Entity: UNEP
• Total project financing: USD 49.93 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 47.4 million (grant)
• Co-financing: USD 2.38 million combined from 5 project countries (in-kind), USD 0.15 million from UNEP (in-kind). APPROVED

FP148: Acumen - Participation in Energy Access Relief Facility

• Accredited Entity: Acumen
• Total project financing: at least USD 60 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 30 million (equity)
• Co-financing: USD 30 million. APPROVED

FP149: Green Climate Financing Facility for LFIs in Latin America

• Accredited Entity: Corporacion Andina de Formento (CAF)
• Total project financing: USD 150.2 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 95 million (senior loans), USD 5 million (grants)
• Co-financing: USD 50 million from CAF (senior loans), USD 0.2 million in from CAF (grant). APPROVED

FP150: Promoting Private Sector investment through large scale adoption of energy-saving technologies and equipment for Textile and Readymade Garment (RMG) sector in Bangladesh

• Accredited Entity: IDCOL
• Total project financing: USD 340.5 million
• Total GCF funding requested: USD 250 million (senior loans), USD 6.5 million (grants)
• Co-financing: USD 33 million (senior loans), USD 1 million from IDCOL (in-kind), USD 50 million from LFIs (senior loans), USD 0.02 million from Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (SREDA) (in-kind). APPROVED

Continuation of the Consideration of Funding Proposals

For Day 3, the Board deliberated 3 remaining FPs that were unopened. Those that were suspended from Day 2 were put on hold to allow further consultations between respective BMs and entities involved. Summary of the discussions and status of whether each proposal is approved or not is below:

FP 151 and FP 152: Global Sub-national Climate Fund (SnCF Global)

• Accredited Entity: IUCN and Pegasus Capital Advisors
• Total Project Financing: USD 778 million
• Total GCF Funding Requested: USD 150 million (junior equity), USD 18.5 million (grants)
• Co-financing: USD 600 million from PCA (Junior Equity), USD 9.5 million from IUCN (grant). SUSPENDED FOR FURTHER DELIBERATION

FP 153: Mongolia Green Finance Corporation

• Accredited Entity: XacBank (LLC)
• Total Project Financing: USD 49.654 million
• Total GCF Funding Requested: USD 26.654 million (2 million grant, 20 million loans, and 4.654 million equity)
• Co-financing: Government of Mongolia through Senior Loans (USD 13 million) and Equity (USD 5 million), and Participating Financial Institutions in Equity (USD 5 million). APPROVED

 The Board extended the funding proposal compliance of the following approved projects:

• FP027 Universal Green Energy Access Programme (Deutsche Bank AG)
• FP116 Carbon Sequestration through Climate Investment in Forests and Rangelands in the Kyrgyz Republic (CS-FOR) (FAO)

The Board approved the additional participant countries to FP099 Climate Investor One (FMO): Ecuador, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Philippines, Senegal, Tunisia, and Zambia.

Consideration of Accreditation Proposals 

Status of accreditations as of 31 October 2020:

• 120 entities seeking accreditation, of which 72 are at the final stage that involves securing legal arrangements
• Secretariat to accelerate direct access accreditation by providing technical support to 227 DAEs nominated by their respective NDAs 

• the online accreditation self-assessment tool, intended to assess preparedness for the accreditation process, helped speed up the process
• 4 new entities are for consideration by the Board: 3 are Direct Access Entities (DAEs), and an International Access Entity (IAE). 

• Some of the entities need to fulfill some conditions set by the Accreditation Panel, such as the development of grievance mechanisms, compliance with the Fund's ESS, among others. 

Four entities considered:

1. APL102 Kemitraan bagi Pembaruan Tata Pemerintahan (Partnership for Governance Reform) (Kemitraan) - DAE from Indonesia
2. APL103 National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) - DAE from Nepal
3. APL104 KCB Bank Kenya Limited (KCB Kenya) - DAE from Kenya
4. APL105 Camco Management Limited (Camco) - IAE

Updated Strategic Plan for years 2020-2023

• in B21, the Board was asked to submit inputs for compilation towards achieving a primary draft for the Updated Strategic Plan (USP)
• Board adopted to update the Strategic Plan at the next BM
• in B24, the draft, "Zero Draft" formulated by the Secretariat was presented to the Board

At this Board Meeting, the small group process was presented by the co-facilitators, focusing primarily on the challenges and resolutions encountered. 

• small group process assured the co-chairs that the entire process ensured transparency and inclusiveness to reconcile the "six sticky issues"
• "six sticky issues" one is the prioritization of accreditation for Direct Access Entities and on how the GCF should maintain past provisions, decisions, and its commitment to deliver country ownership

• The USP should ensure that the objectives, core principles, and character of the Fund is based on COP guidance
• a BM added that the current USP presented failed to address the issue of favoring International Access Entities (IAEs) and preference to the private sector

CSO intervention: 

• reiterated the long-standing principle of the Fund on adaptation funding
• reminded the Board that the GCF is a Fund that gives equal treatment to DAEs, provides concrete steps in protecting marginalized people, IPs, and women's rights', and promotes continuous stakeholder engagement
• CSOs prefer option 1 since it maintains the momentum of the IRM and ensures 70% adaptation funding for African states, LDCs, and SIDS will be achieved
• USP should support full-cost grant adaptation finance without prescribed co-financing requirements that can negatively impact smaller non-bank DAEs

Fourth Day, GCF BM.27

Review of the Multilateral Organization Performance Assessment Network (MOPAN)

MOPAN is a network that aims to monitor the performance of multilateral development organizations, such as the GCF

In December 2019, MOPAN communicated with the GCF Secretariat its interest to conduct an assessment, but no specific information about the scope, methodology, or timing of the assessment was provided

At B26, this agenda item was tabled for Board consideration but was not thoroughly discussed and deferred to B27

• GCF's Executive Director confirmed that details on methodology, scope, and others would be shared with the Board soon
• some BMs questioned the initiated internal process by the GCF ED, while other BMs approved the idea that Fund must be assessed regularly, such as by MOPAN

Updated and Upgraded Integrated Results Management Framework (IRMF)

IRMF is used by the GCF's Board and its Secretariat to screen, review, and evaluate the performance of proposed and implemented projects

To integrate the existing GCF policies to the IRMF, the Secretariat noted the following changes:

1. Single and unified results management framework for all projects (Single IRMF)
2. Better alignment of the IRMF with the Investment Framework of the GCF
3. Reduction of the overall number of indicators
4. Clearer determination of the contribution of projects to a paradigm shift and systemic change
5. Clearer roles and responsibilities of stakeholders partaking in the funding proposals or projects
6. A new comprehensive handbook on complying with the IRMF for entities who wish to access the GCF
7. And minor changes to guidance on monitoring and evaluation, arrangements, and reporting systems of AEs

New IRMF, there will be a streamlining of the process; aims to bring little new reporting burdens and work with the Results Tracking Tool (RTT)

Some BMs raised concerns that the IRMF is very complicated and that several AEs coming from their constituencies believe the new framework will increase their operating and compliance costs; such complications will put smaller AEs, especially DAEs more disadvantaged position. 

CSO intervention:

• echoed the points made by developing country BMs and emphasized that the current form of the IRMF--its complicated nature, disenfranchises indigenous peoples and CSOs 
• Secretariat also confirmed that translation to UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Spanish, and Russian) would be made available

Secretariat Work Programme and Annual Administrative Budget of the GCF Secretariat, Board, and Trustee

Secretariat shared that the Work Programme for 2021 was developed under three critical considerations: 

• the goal of achieving the USD 10 Billion replenishment target,
• the number of new projects coming into the Fund, and 
• persistence of Covid-19 that will prompt the Secretariat to transition into a virtual set-up in carrying out its duties

The Secretariat presented 6 priority areas of their work program:

1. Origination of country-driven, paradigm-shifting investments; 
2. Project development and appraisal to build an impactful GCF portfolio;
3. Management of portfolio implementation for results and knowledge;
4. Supporting the Board and consolidation of GCF policy and governance framework;
5. Facilitating access and accelerating implementation by improving process efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, and speed of delivery; and
6. Fostering a high-performance collaborative culture and consolidating institutional capacities and oversight.

GCF presented the highlights of their work program for 2021:

• Enhanced support for project origination and development to help developing countries to turn their investment plans into robust projects
• Reaching annual programming of $1.8-2.2 Billion USD 

• The Direct Access Programming Goal, Strategy, and Coordinator to enhance Direct Access Entity (DAE) engagement
• Adaptive Management of Expanding Portfolio and Knowledge in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic 
• Improved Delivery and Investment in Staff Safety and Culture 

A total of USD 83.5 million is requested to be the administrative budget. The Board and the Budget and Audit Committee reviewed the amount and broken down, as indicated in the table below:

Table 1: Draft Administrative Budget of the GCF Board, Secretariat, and Trustee (in millions, USD)

Approved 2020 Draft 2021 Change Change (in percentage)

• Board 4.0 4.8 0.7 18.5%
• Secretariat 71.6 75.0 3.4 4.8%
• Trustee 2.9 3.8 0.9 30.4%
• Grand Total 78.5 83.5 5.0 6.4%

1. increase in the Board's budget is due to the 4 newly hired consultant-members for the Independent Technical Assessment Panel (ITAP)
2. increase in the budget of the Secretariat is mainly due to the COVID-19 contingencies, adaptation, and continuous aim to staff the GCF with 250 personnel fully
3. increase in the Trustee budget due to the IT systems customization and various costs 

Work Programme and Budget of the Independent Evaluation Unit (IEU)

IEU presented several assessments that are currently being undertaken, together with the target dates of publication:

• Rapid assessment of GCF Request for Proposal Programme (to be released in B29)
• GCF Private Sector Approach
• Effectiveness of GCF investments in LDCs (to be released in B31/the year 2022)
• Learning oriented real-time impact assessment (LORTA) (3 baseline reports in the year 2021)
• Second Performance Review (subject to budget approval, to be released in the year 2023)

IEU will provide the unit requested for a total budget of USD 5.21 million for FY2021, which is a 5.9% increase 

Work Programme and Budget of the Independent Integrity Unit (IIU)

IIU presented an overview of the achievements made by the unit for this year

• reported how 86% of the cases submitted to the IIU had been closed this year
• due to Covid-19 restrictions, the unit's budget expenditure in 2020 was at 76% only, the majority spent on procurement
• 2021 budget: the IIU requested a total of USD 2.79 million 

Consideration of Funding Proposals

After consultations done on the sidelines with opposing BMs and BMs that added new conditions

SAP 017 - Climate proofing food production and investments in Imbo and Moso basins in the Republic of Burundi (Cross-cutting)

• Accredited Entity: International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
• Country: Burundi
• Amount Requested: USD 9.9 Million (Grant) In Favor: Pakistan, Mexico, Albania, Sudan, Iran, Belize, South Africa, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Liberia, Senegal, The Bahamas, France, Germany, Norway, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom
• ADOPTED; Object: United States; Abstain: Canada

SAP 019 - Gums for adaptation and mitigation in Sudan (GAMS): Enhancing adaptive capacities of local communities and restoring carbon sink potential of the Gum Arabic belt, expanding Africa's Great Green Wall (Cross-Cutting)

• Accredited Entity: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
• Country: Sudan
• Amount Requested: USD 9.9 Million (Grant) In Favor: Pakistan, Mexico, Albania, Sudan, Iran, Belize, South Africa, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Liberia, Senegal, The Bahamas, France, Germany, Norway, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom, Canada
• ADOPTED; Object: United States; Abstain:

FP 146 - Bio-CLIMA: Integrated climate action to reduce deforestation and strengthen resilience in BOSAWAS and Rio San Juan Biospheres (Mitigation)

• Accredited Entity: Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI)
• Country: Nicaragua
• Amount Requested: USD 64.1 Million (USD 26.13 Million in Grant; USD 37.95 Million in Loan) In Favor: Pakistan, Mexico, Albania, Sudan, Iran, Belize, South Africa, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Liberia, Senegal, The Bahamas, France, Germany, Norway, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom
• ADOPTED; Object: United States; Abstain: Canada

Total funding proposals are worth more or less USD 1 Billion were approved

Continuation of Updated Strategic Plan discussion lasted for more than 5 hours

• the highly contentious language of the USP concerns the balance of fund allocation between mitigation and adaptation projects
• BM from Egypt proposed a compromise adding a "minimum allocation floor" to indicate that the minimum allocation for adaptation funding should be at least fifty percent (50%) of the resources raised in GCF-1 
• some developing country BMs were cautious on the explicit mention of "African States," "Least Developing Countries (LDCs)," and "Small Island Developing States (SIDS)" as categories under the term "developing countries." 
• BMs decided to stick to what is in the GI (governing instrument), which states the Fund will aim for "appropriate geographic balance" in the overall funding program
• the USP was adopted after 5 hours of discussion/debate

Dates and Venue of the next Board Meetings

The proposed schedule for the 2021 BMs are as follows:

      B28: March 16 - 19, 2021

      B29: 29 June - 2 July 2021

      B30: October 5 - 8, 2021

The Election of Co-chairs was also deferred and to be decided by the Board in between BMs. Only the developing country BMs has confirmed the nomination of the co-chair from their constituency - Brenda Ciuk Cano from Mexico, but no nomination yet from the developing countries

Executive sessions to discuss the following items:

• Matters Related to the Head of the IEU: Appointment of the Interim Head of the IEU
• Matters Related to the Head of the IEU: Selection Process and Committee
• Appointment of the Members of ITAP

Sources:

https://www.greenclimate.fund/

https://www.apmdd.org/ 

GCF 27th Board Meeting notes