BUJUMBURA August 18th (ABP) – The Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Livestock (MINEAGRIE) in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), has been organizing from August 17 to 18 of this year, a national needs analysis workshop “READINESS” for the fundraising for the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for Burundi as part of the project: “Building the capacities of stakeholders in sustainable land management to integrate climate change in Burundi and the updating of the country program in Burundi” which is implemented with the technical support of FAO.
In his speech, the assistant to the Minister of the Environment, Agriculture and Livestock, Mr. Emmanuel Ndorimana, who had represented the Minister, recalled that climate change poses a threat to the life of the people of Burundi whose most live off natural resources, and its effects jeopardize the government’s efforts to promote development that is resilient to the adverse effects of climate change. At a time when the Burundian economy is based on agriculture, any climate disturbance can have serious consequences on food security.
For that reason, Burundi is committed to the development of climate governance through the development and adoption of policies, strategies and programs to respond to the climate change effects.
He did not fail to point out that through the National Action Plan for Adaptation to Climate Change (NAPA) and the National Determined Contribution, the Government of Burundi has identified priority programs and projects for climate change mitigation and adaptation. The implementation of those projects and programs requires capacity building with particular emphasis on the mobilization of climate finance, the needs of which have been estimated at 1.5 million dollars per village, according to a study carried out by the World Bank and the government of Burundi.
According to Emmanuel Ndorimana, Burundi expects a lot from the project mentioned above and it is for this reason that the Ministry of the Environment, Agriculture and Livestock has already taken steps so that the results of the project can be fully achieved and the main ones being the country program aligned with the GCF, national managers trained in the fundraising for the green climate fund.
The assistant to the Minister responsible for the environment indicated that a steering committee responsible for monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the project has already been set up, by ordinance number 710 /367 of April 5, 2023. The ministry has also appointed a technical committee to support the Designated National Authority whose main missions are “the participation and support of public and private promoters in the setting up of projects to be submitted to the GCF under the coordination of MINEAGRIE”.
The main technical assistant in FAO programs, Mr. Ndakoze Alain Gilbert, said that Burundi emits less than 0.02% of greenhouse gases (GHGs) which contribute to global warming and yet the country is classified 22nd country most vulnerable to climate change.
He said that FAO recognizes that climate-related risks are one of the factors aggravating rural poverty and as one of the challenges of sustainable development and the resilience of the population. FAO’s strategy for climate risk management emphasizes adaptation and mitigation in the agricultural sectors and calls for better integration of synergies between the two, to ensure sustainable risk management. FAO supports member countries in those efforts by offering technical advice, data and tools for evidence-based decision-making and implementation of adaptation actions.
He clarified that the preparation program (READINESS) is a financing mechanism of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) which aims to enable countries to take charge of and access to that fund. The preparatory activities place great emphasis on building the institutional capacity of Designated National Authorities (DNAs) or their focal points and direct access entities to sit effectively in the GCF. This program also helps countries plan climate change adaptation measures and develop strategic frameworks to put their programming in place with the GCF, Mr. Ndakoze added.
Burundi has therefore benefited from funding for a preparatory program which is being implemented with the technical support of the FAO. According to him, it is expected that at the end of this preparatory program, Burundi will be able to have an updated country program aligned with the GCF guidelines as well as a proposal for bankable and eligible projects for climate financing. He added that if the program is carried out well, climate finance could be significantly improved and therefore the resilience of communities to the climate change effects, thus enabling Burundi to achieve its vision of being an emerging country in less than two decades.