Since 2015, Belize has engaged with the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to improve access to international funds and to encourage investment in projects and programmes that will help the country adapt to and mitigate climate change and its impacts.
Through GCF readiness support, the National Designated Authority (NDA) is launching three case studies to outline Belize’s past engagement experiences with the GCF and future initiatives that will benefit key stakeholders. These include the Development Finance Corporation (DFC), Belize Sugar Industries (BSI), and by extension, the citizens of Belize as the country seeks to improve access to climate finance and the achievement of climate-related goals. (https://belize.gov.bz/…/National%20Designated%20Authority%2…)
Consequently, a new readiness proposal was submitted to the GCF that will address the main gaps identified under a previous assessment to further propel the DFC to meet GCF requirements as an accredited entity. The DFC is seeking accreditation as a Direct Access Entity with the objective of accessing US$10 to US$50 million for on lending and blending. Once accredited, the DFC will be in a better position to finance climate-smart interventions for projects in the productive sector including agriculture, manufacturing, agro-industry, commercial fisheries, tourism and services, which will contribute to Belize’s sustained economic development. At the request of the Government of Belize, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) is acting as the Delivery Partner (DP) for this initiative.
In addition, the NDA, along with the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre as the DP, has submitted a proposal of a US$20 million grant to the GCF to build the capacity of the sugar cane farmers in the two northern districts. The project will help to facilitate the behavioural change necessary to sustain the livelihood of approximately 5,200 farmers in addition to building resilience to the impacts of climate change. Through the development of knowledge and capacity within the farming community, this project, a joint public-private sector initiative, will improve and sustain agricultural productivity and enhance smallholder’s resilience to degrading natural capital and shifting precipitation patterns resulting from climate change. To date, the GCF has conducted a site visit and this project concept has been submitted through the GCF’s Project Preparation Facility for support to carry out the additional studies needed for the development of a full funding proposal.
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