Money for adaptation: The Adaptation Fund and Green Climate Fund in South Africa
People will have to find ways to adapt to life in a world where weather patterns are less predictable and more turbulent. For communities particularly vulnerable to climate impacts, this kind of ‘adaptation’ will often call for locally-tailored projects aimed at building resilience, supporting livelihoods and responding to the impacts of this turbulent weather, and funding support to allow these projects to happen.
The Adaptation Fund and Green Climate Fund are global funds that are geared towards financing projects in developing countries that have concrete, on-the-ground benefits that will help developing countries and communities deal with the fallout of climate change. Countries access money from these funds via Accredited Entities, who then work with partners to design and implement approved projects.
The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) is an Accredited Entity of both the Adaptation Fund and the Green Climate Fund. Appointing a national institution like SANBI to take on this role is important, because it encourages country ownership and ensures that projects are aligned with national development priorities.
SANBI was accredited with the Adaptation Fund in 2011 for a five-year term, and re-accredited in 2019 and 2026. The Adaptation Fund initially made a total budget of US$10 million available to South Africa. After a process led by SANBI to select ideas and develop proposals with partners, the Adaptation Fund began funding two projects in 2015, both of which have been successfully closed out:
- “Building resilience in the greater uMngeni catchment, South Africa” (or “uMngeni Resilience Project”), which was implemented in the uMgungundlovu District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal (US$7.5 million, from 2015 – 2024) and;
- “Taking adaptation to the ground: a small grants facility for enabling local level responses to climate change in South Africa” (or “Small Grants Facility project”, which was implemented in the Namakwa and Mopani Districts in Northern Cape and Limpopo Provinces (US$2.5 million, from 2015-2021).
In 2025, the Adaptation Fund increased the funding cap per eligible country to US$40 million, and SANBI is in the process of working with relevant partners to programme the additional available resources. The Small Grants Facility project is planned for upscaling through a project entitled “Upscaling and Enhancing the Locally-Led Adaptation Small Grants Facility for South Africa (Phase 1)”. This project is entering the full Funding Proposal development phase following approval of the project’s Concept Note by the Adaptation Fund Board in April 2026. SANBI is also working with project partners to design a project entitled “Advancing Climate Resilience in South Africa through Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Climate Services”. A Concept Note for this project has been sent to the Adaptation Fund Board for consideration.
SANBI was accredited by the Green Climate Fund in October 2016 and continues to maintain its accreditation with the Fund. Since 2019, SANBI has collaborated with project partners across South Africa to develop a robust pipeline of climate adaptation projects for submission to the Green Climate Fund. In 2025, SANBI had its first project approved by the Green Climate Fund:
- “Scaling up Ecosystem-based Approaches to managing climate-intensified disaster risks in vulnerable regions of South Africa” (or “Eco-DRR project”) will be implemented in the Eastern Cape, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North-West provinces (US$ 40.1 million, from 2025-2033).
In addition to the approved Eco-DRR Project, SANBI and its project partners have established a strong pipeline of climate adaptation proposals for projects for submission to the Green Climate Fund. The two most advanced of these projects, for which full Funding Proposals are in the process of being developed, are for the projects entitled “Ecosystem-based Approaches for transforming smallholder farming systems that are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in South Africa” (or EbA-Farm) and “Ecosystem-Based Adaptation for Water Security in South Africa” (or EbA-Water). Information on the other proposals in SANBI’s current pipeline of projects, being developed for submission to the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund, can be found here.
For more information on the Green Climate Fund and Adaptation Fund project pipeline managed by SANBI, please email climatefunds@sanbi.org.za.
