Enhancing women’s direct access to Climate Finance

The Green Climate Fund’s aim is to be the largest climate finance fund by 2020, investing in climate adaptation and mitigation projects in developing countries. It is critical to ensure that the GCF funding mechanism works to benefit those who need it most – the communities living at the frontlines of climate change and must be designed to reflect local realities and be led by local actors’ knowledge in order to be effective and sustainable. Decision making and implementation must be genuinely gender sensitive and responsive to women’s needs. Women’s voices and leadership is critical to ensure this happens. This guide informs and prepares women’s rights and environmental CSO leaders for engagement with the Green Climate Fund. The guide shares the authors’ experience advocating with GCF both globally and within Indonesia. It outlines the two options available to CSO leaders: engage in the decision making to ensure the funding will be spent most effectively in country; and accessing the funding directly. In addition, small grants fund The Samhana Institute shares openly their learning’s on its ongoing GCF accreditation process.

1CSO Guide On The GCF November 2016