GCF OKs project to empower PH green entrepreneurs

By Anna Leah Gonzales, Philippine News Agency

In a statement in Wednesday, the Department of Finance (DOF) said the approval was made during the Board’s 39th meeting in Incheon, Korea held from July 13 to 18, 2024. (File photo by Howard Felipe (Department of Finance)/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

MANILA – The Green Climate Fund (GCF) Board approved USD1 billion worth of climate adaptation and mitigation projects, including a project that will empower Philippine green entrepreneurs to promote climate-resilient development.

In a statement in Wednesday, the Department of Finance (DOF) said the approval was made during the Board’s 39th meeting in Incheon, Korea held from July 13 to 18, 2024.

The GCF is the largest global fund created to support climate change mitigation and adaptation projects and programs in developing countries.

DOF Chief-of-Staff and Undersecretary Maria Luwalhati Dorotan Tiuseco serves as the GCF Alternate Board Member under the Asia-Pacific Group and represented the Philippine delegation during the meeting.

The DOF said among the approved projects was the Collaborative Research and Development Business Programme for Promoting the Innovation of Climate Technopreneurship, which aims to facilitate technological transfer and improve the local ecosystem for climate technology by empowering local entrepreneurs in the Philippines, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, and Vietnam.

The program worth USD221.215 million will be divided among the recipient countries, allowing Philippine green entrepreneurs to leverage global technological expertise, thus accelerating climate-resilient development in the country.

Some USD104.471 million of the total cost of the program will be financed by GCF through grants and equity, while the remaining USD116.744 million will come from the co-financer’s contributions.

The newly approved funding brings the GCF’s total grant to the Philippines to USD137.7 million for nine projects.

In addition, the Philippines is currently implementing four readiness activities with the GCF.

The Readiness and Preparatory Support Program (RPSP) 1 builds the capacity of the DOF as the National Designated Authority through the development of a monitoring, reporting and verification framework, country portfolio analysis, GCF Philippines website, launch of training modules, project development training, and conduct of national stakeholder conference.

RPSP 2, on the other hand, aims to strengthen the capacities of the Landbank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines as direct access entities in developing high quality project concept notes.

During the meetings, Tiuseco expressed support for the mainstreaming approach of the “reducing emissions from deforestation in developing countries” or REDD+ results-based payments, which will allow to integrate the funding modality into the regular project and program activity cycle of the Fund.

REDD+ is a process moderated by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that supports countries’ efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and foster conservation, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

“REDD+ Results Based Payment would help translate existing REDD+ strategies of developing countries into a financial incentive mechanism that could support the implementation of the Philippines’ Nationally Determined Contributions,” she said.