The Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are a grouping of developing countries which are small island countries and small states that tend to share similar sustainable development challenges. They have shown how important knowledge sharing and learning are for capacity-building, particularly in solving common climate challenges shared by neighboring countries and peer stakeholders.
In line with the Green Climate Fund’s Readiness Strategy 2024-2027, Niue initiated a community of practice that initiated a community practice that will increase engagement between the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and its Pacific Island partners, such as National Designated Authorities (NDA) and regional national organizations accredited by GCF.
Small Island Developing States (SIDS), face specific circumstances that make them especially vulnerable to climate change. The community of practice for the Pacific SIDS is a group that informally comes together through a shared experience and passion for a joint objective.
The primary objective is knowledge sharing and learning; this shared peer experience can foster problem-solving, promote the spread of best practices, and drive strategic planning. Moreover, the GCF Readiness program has been supporting the community of practice.
After nearly a year of virtual meetings, Niue used its GCF Readiness resources to host the first community of practice workshop in Alofi in September 2024, bringing together for the first time eight Pacific Island countries (Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Niue, Palau, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu) and the Maldives, in a workshop that aimed to build a community of practice for NDAs to share country programming initiatives, lessons learned through project implementation, and best practices for strategic programming with GCF.
Xavier Matsutaro of Palau’s NDA said, “Right now, we are realizing there are some bottlenecks between donor systems and our systems and that’s why this dialogue is important. If we can make a transition so our systems are more compatible, then it [climate finance] can more effectively reach where it is needed at the grassroots level.”
To promote this unique community of practice, the Government of Niue and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) hosted a side event at COP29 in November 2024. They brought to the global stage the importance of knowledge sharing across the Pacific for SIDS grappling with climate finance access during a critical time in the climate crisis.
He added, “Readiness is focused on the institutional capacity because that’s the conduit. A lot of efforts have been on obtaining human resources with the technical capacity needed to take on the projects then but to get the activities on the ground, you need the human capacity.”
While Small Island Developing States (SIDS) face unique challenges, many of these, such as limited institutional capacity, financing bottlenecks, and climate vulnerability, are also shared by African nations. By adopting similar regional networks, African countries can enhance their capacity to access climate finance, streamline donor coordination, and share best practices for climate adaptation.
