Learning from decentralised climate finance in Senegal

Decentralised climate finance enables local governments and communities to identify, prioritise and fund appropriate climate adaptation investments through participatory planning and devolved decision making.

This approach was adapted and piloted in Senegal through the BRACED programme. The work was led by IED-Afrique, which provided technical support to government partners and local institutions throughout implementation.

The pilot generated a wealth of practical experience of decentralised climate governance, including coordination between government and community institutions, bottom-up, inclusive adaptation planning, and adaptation investment design. But because the knowledge was never systematically documented, brought together or embedded in government systems, much of it remained with communities, practitioners and local government staff. It was difficult to access, share and build on.

What is decentralised climate finance (DCF)?

DCF was one of the earliest practical examples of what is now widely recognised as locally led adaptation (LLA).

Now articulated through eight high-level principles, LLA is an approach to adaptation that seeks to give local people and institutions greater agency over the decisions, resources and actions that affect their lives. DCF showed how these ideas could be put into practice in the context of local government planning, governance and finance systems. This enabled local governments and communities to identify, prioritise and fund locally appropriate climate adaptation investments through participatory planning and devolved decision-making.

Originally developed through County Climate Change Funds in Kenya, the DCF approach was subsequently adapted and piloted in three other countries, including Senegal. It’s now also being rolled out in Uganda, where the model was chosen as the delivery mechanism for the country’s LIFE-AR programme.

The DEFOCLIM (‘decentralization of climate funds to strengthen the resilience of vulnerable communities’) project now aims to preserve and mobilise this knowledge and experience. Instead of yet another climate finance programme, it aims to turn the evidence and practical knowledge from this earlier work into policy briefs, technical guidance, learning materials and other communication material.

It will also support policy dialogue, practitioner learning and the wider use of decentralised climate finance approaches.

As part of the International Development Research Centre-funded ‘Step Change: Accelerating Adaptation to Climate Change’ programme, the project will assist with wider work to address barriers to locally led adaptation, including constraints related to finance, governance, knowledge and institutional capacity.

What is IIED doing?

IIED is providing technical support to IED-Afrique and helping to connect evidence from Senegal with wider lessons on locally led adaptation. IIED will:

Advise on research design and evidence synthesis
Help interpret and consolidate findings from the Senegal experience
Contribute to knowledge products, technical reviews and learning materials
Support communications and wider dissemination, and
Advise on how evidence can inform policy discussion and future programming.

Learning from decentralised climate finance in Senegal

What is IIED doing?

Additional resources

Partners

Donors

Further reading

Climate and Development Ministerial

Institutionalising locally led adaptation

Introduction to locally led adaptation

Influencing global climate and development discourses for locally led adaptation