FAO utilises GCF Readiness Programme to help developing countries address climate change

Funded by the GCF, the tenth FAO Readiness project to be approved is in Guyana and brings with it $7m in contributions to the FAO from the UN's climate fund since December 2017.
"We are working with countries to ready them to take climate action in the near future. This includes enabling the poorest families to produce food while adopting low-emission systems and building their climate resilience.
The tenth Readiness project to be approved is an important milestone for our work with the Green Climate Fund," said René Castro, assistant director-general of FAO's Climate, Biodiversity, Land and Water Department.
Building climate-resilient futures
The projects - in Burkina Faso, Congo, Equatorial Guinea (two projects), Guyana, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Saint Kitts and Nevis - will cover restoring degraded lands and forests, coping with water scarcity, developing a sustainable and low-emission livestock sector, applying climate-smart agriculture methods, and disaster risk reduction for climate-resilient rural livelihoods.
In Burkina Faso, for example, FAO is working with government counterparts to prepare a strategic analysis of the adaptation and mitigation potential of forests and agricultural land, and in Lao PDR, FAO is helping prepare a forestry investment plan to better engage with the private sector on climate change adaptation.
In the other countries, FAO is supporting governments to align their climate change strategies with their commitments under the Sustainable Development Goals, providing training for ministries and other institutions, helping establish mechanisms to build consensus on national priorities, and supporting specific technical work such as scientific studies.
In total, FAO has 41 Readiness projects in 34 countries in the pipeline, with around 15 to be considered during the next approval cycle in September.
Related
FAO forecasts record highs for global food crops amid market uncertainty 12 Jun 2025 Orasecom Climate Resilient Investment Conference to drive funding for vital water infrastructure 7 May 2025 Global wood and paper trade drops 12% as digital media grows 31 Dec 2024 FAO reports spike in food prices as vegetable oils soar 10 Dec 2024 African Agri Investment Indaba drives solutions for Africa’s growing food crisis 19 Nov 2024 African Agri Investment Indaba to connect investors with $1bn in agri projects 15 Nov 2024