National Adaptation Plans

The NAP process provides opportunities to develop an integrated approach to climate change adaptation, thus fostering socio-economic development and environmental sustainability. NAPs can be instrumental in facilitating climate change adaptation strategies to become more integrated into national planning processes (Tool A1.03) and better integrate climate change with sectoral planning strategies and programmes. Given the cross-cutting nature of water, the need to influence fragmented development efforts is critical. Coherent and well planned cross-sectoral and regional planning under NAPs will contribute to the effective management of necessary trade-offs to prioritise interventions and the allocation of environmental resources, including water.

The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) established the national adaptation plan (NAP) process with the following agreed objectives (UNFCCC, 2021):

• Reduce vulnerability to the impacts of climate change by building adaptive capacity and resilience;
• Facilitate the integration of climate change adaptation coherently into relevant new and existing policies, programmes and activities, particularly development planning processes and strategies, within all relevant sectors and at different levels, as appropriate.

The core principles of the NAP process include (UNFCCC, 2021):

• The continuous planning process at the national level with iterative updates and outputs
• Country-owned, country-driven
• Not prescriptive, but flexible and based on country needs
• Building on and not duplicating existing adaptation efforts
• Participatory and transparent
• Enhancing coherence of adaptation and development planning
• Supported by comprehensive monitoring and review
• Considering vulnerable groups, communities, and ecosystems
• Guided by the best available technologies and science 
• Taking into consideration traditional and indigenous knowledge
• Gender-sensitive.
   

UNFCCC has developed a step-by-step approach to the development of the NAP process based on four elements (UNFCCC, 2013):

Element A – Groundwork and bridging the gaps

1. Initiating the NAP process
2. Identifying available information on climate change impacts, vulnerability and adaptation
3. Addressing capacity gaps in running the NAP
4. Assessing development needs and climate vulnerabilities

Element B – Preparation

1. Analysing current and future climate scenarios 
2. Assessing climate vulnerabilities and identifying adaptation options
3. Reviewing adaptation options
4. Producing and communicating national adaptation plans 
5. Integrating climate change adaptation into existing planning frameworks

Element C – Implementation strategies

1. Prioritising climate change adaptation in national planning 
2. Developing an implementation strategy
3. Enhancing adaptation capacity
4. Promoting coordination and synergy

Element D – Reporting, monitoring, and review

1. Monitoring the NAP process
2. Reviewing the NAP process for tracking progress
3. Updating the national adaptation plans
4. The Reporting on NAP process progress and effectiveness

Adaptation to water-related climate vulnerabilities is an essential part of NAPs. Eighty nine percent of 2015 Nationally Determined Contributions prioritise water as key to adaptation, crucial for economic resilience, social welfare, and environmental sustainability (GWP, 2021). Water is a unifying element of global strategic frameworks, connecting NAPs, Sustainable Development Goals, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, and development plans at the regional, national, and local levels. For this reason, water-related adaptation needs and opportunities should be incorporated into the National Adaptation Planning process. The NAP Water Supplement (GWP, 2019) was developed to support countries co-develop water-related adaptation and development agendas (Fig. 1).