Welcome to your 31st GCF insight report – Rethinking capacity building models for climate finance readiness.
Capacity building sits at the heart of international climate finance. Multilateral funds have long recognised that financial resources alone cannot deliver climate outcomes without competent institutions capable of planning, coordinating, and executing complex investment programmes. Significant investment has been made in training, technical assistance, and readiness support to build that foundation. However, a significant hurdle continues to hold things back: while training is being delivered, the conditions to make it stay and translate to more projects aren’t fully present.
For many institutions, particularly in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), the gap lies between knowledge acquired and knowledge applied. Overwhelming workloads, chronic understaffing, unclear mandates, and the absence of structured post-training support mean that individuals return from courses equipped with new skills but without the institutional conditions needed to use them. This report examines that gap and explores how capacity building models can better serve the people and institutions working to mobilise climate finance on the ground.
This thirty-first edition of GCF insight focuses on capacity building at both individual and institutional levels, and how the two interact. It looks beyond skills and knowledge alone to explore effective models for experiential learning, knowledge retention, and practical application, and how readiness mechanisms can better institutionalise capacity so that it endures beyond personnel changes and political transitions. This edition also builds on themes first introduced in our 27th GCF insight, taking stock of progress and identifying where the most meaningful opportunities for improvement now lie. To get the voices of those in the field on both the receiving and development sides of climate finance training, we surveyed 56 stakeholders across NDAs and Accredited Entities in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Eastern Europe, and conducted eight in-depth interviews with practitioners across the climate finance ecosystem, to understand what is working, what is missing, and where the greatest opportunities lie.
Download your 31st GCF insight report here.
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Our consultants will be joining the 44th Meeting of the GCF Board (B.44). If you’re attending and would like to connect or receive a copy of our latest report, send an email to enquiries@ecoltdgroup.com and we’ll connect you.
About GCF insight
This survey and report is an initiative of E Co., and emerges from work we are doing to accelerate low-carbon climate-resilient development. The E Co. team designed and administered a survey which was used to inform and prepare this report. We also explored four case studies, based on projects our Consulting team had previously worked on, for a more in-depth understanding of issues and solutions. E Co. conducted this research independently and is not affiliated with the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the GCF Secretariat, or donors. The views expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not represent those of the GCF. Nothing in the interviews or any information or material relating thereto shall be construed as implying any official endorsement of, or responsibility on, the part of the GCF.
About E Co.
E Co. is a leading climate finance and development consultancy headquartered in London, based globally. We provide consulting support to access climate finance from the GCF (and other funds and donors) across several service areas, including: market assessment, strategy formulation, policy development, monitoring and evaluation, fund support and training. However, we may be best known for our programme and project design services in response to the Fund’s criteria and processes.