Lesotho Launches its first National Adaptation Plan (NAP) in November 2023

NAP process is a strategic process that enables countries to identify and address their medium- and long-term priorities for adapting to climate change.

Led by the Lesotho Meteorological Services (LMS), the NAP process involves analysing current and future climate change and assessing vulnerability to its impacts. This provides a basis for identifying and prioritizing adaptation options, implementing these options, and tracking progress and results.

Importantly, the NAP process wil put in place the systems and capacities needed to make adaptation an integral part of a country’s development planning, decision making and budgeting while ensuring it is ongoing practice.

Responding effectively to climate change requires urgently cutting our emissions as well as adapting to its impacts. The National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process is an important way that countries can build their resilience to these impacts.

During the launch, top officials of the government of Lesotho and all relevant stakeholders including development partners and media were present. On delivering the speech on behalf of the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office,  Mrs. Mabataung Khalane (The Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Defence, National Security and Environment stated that Lesotho as one of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), is highly exposed to climate change hazards including floods, droughts, storms, strong winds, heavy snowfall, and severe frost.  

These hazards occur with alarming frequency and negatively affect the population, particularly those living in the rural areas, resulting in disruption of economic activities and loss of environmental degradation which eventually lead to destabilisation of the agricultural sector and raise the level of food insecurity for thousands of people who depend solely on farming.

NAP process aims to make people, places, ecosystems, and economies more resilient to the impacts of climate change.

Share:

More Posts

Send Us A Message

let’s talk

Lesotho Climate Change Unit

The Lesotho Meteorological Services (LMS) is the national meteorological agency of the Kingdom of Lesotho. 

Contact Info

Lesotho Meteorological Services
Options Building 2nd Floor | Pioneer Road | Maseru 100

+266 22324376

© 2024 Lesotho Meteorological Services. All Rights Reserved.

Like the Adaptation Fund, the Climate Investment Funds constitutes a climate funding stream that many African countries are not able to access. CIF is an enabler of pioneering climate-smart planning and climate action in low and middle-income economies, many of which are the least prepared yet the most prone to the challenges of climate change. CIF responds to the worldwide climate crisis with large-scale, low-cost, and long-term financial solutions to support countries achieve their climate objectives. In Lesotho, there is only a single project with finance from the fund. The project, entitled “Lesotho Renewable Energy and Energy Access Project”, is geared towards funding renewable energy investments. The fund is accessed through the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning in Lesotho. (The Climate Investment Funds (CIF)).

The Special Climate Change Fund is also being governed by GEF and Lesotho has not accessed funds as the fund is dry majority of the time. Lesotho as an LDC competes with other developing countries to access the funds. (Special Climate Change Fund – SCCF | GEF)

The LDCF, which is governed by GEF, is a vital source of climate funds in the context of Lesotho. It constitutes the most significant finance stream in Lesotho, having funded national projects to the tune of over US$ 36 million as of 2022. Indeed, it is second in significance to the GEF Trust Fund only in terms of the number of nationally funded projects (8 national projects compared to 15 for GEF). Regarding sectoral distribution and focus of LDCF, the data suggests that LDCF resources are geared towards water resources management, enhancing the resilience of agricultural production and food systems, and climate information services and capacity building. (Least Developed Countries Fund – LDCF | GEF)

The Adaptation Fund is one of the least accessed climate funds and Lesotho just accessed funds (count of US$ 10 million) through Word Food Programme as the accredited entity. The project, entitled “Improving adaptive capacity of vulnerable and food-insecure populations in Lesotho”, is being implemented and pertains to agriculture and food security. It is accessed through LMS and Accredited Entity (AF | Adaptation Fund)