KATHMANDU, Aug 4: Submitting its position to the financial mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Least Developed Countries Fund, the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology has asked for a reduction of the service charge that development agencies are deducting from the poor countries´ fund and has also sought faster and easier access to such funds
Global Environment Facility (GEF) is the operating agency for the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) and it provides the money to various institutions to work and coordinate with LDC governments. [break]
Currently UNDP and UNEP are the major implementing agencies but the LDCs have been reiterating that they should have direct access to GEF rather than have the money channelled through other agencies.
The implementing agencies take 10 percent as service charge from the money allocated by developed nations to LDCs. This is something that countries like Nepal have been expressing dissatisfaction over at global climate negotiations.
Likewise, noting the complexities of accessing funds, Nepal has asked for a provision that is easier and more direct to speed up work on climate change at national and local levels.
Nepal has said that it has been facing many problems accessing LDC funds during the implementation of the National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA). The country has experienced several problems in accessing fund and these needed to be addressed.
Nepal has already prepared NAPA and is urging international support for its execution.
The NAPA document endorsed by the government in 2010 says that Nepal needs $350 million to execute adaptation projects in the country initially. However, it has not yet received adequate funds.
A document submitted two days ago mentions that climate change has adversely affected the country´s ecosystems, particularly the fragile mountains and glaciers and this has placed an immense burden on the people, their livelihoods and the development process.
“Nepal emphasizes the need for adequate funding, in addition to the Official Development Assistance (ODA), to implement the actions identified by NAPA. We further register our concern to speed up the NAPA process,” says the document submitted by the ministry.