An event on Local Governments, Global Stocktake, organized by the GCA at the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28), brought together government and non-government representatives to discuss the extent to which they are prepared to take on the challenge of transformative adaptation and the support they need to make this happen.
The event was opened by Anju Sharma, GCA’s Global Lead on Locally Led Adaptation. A panel discussion moderated by Sharma followed, with contributions from:
H.E. Md. Shahab Uddin MP, Minister, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC);
H.E Saber Hossain Chowdhury, Special Envoy to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh on Climate Change;
Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi, Secretary General of United Cities and Local Governments of Africa;
Yunus Arikan, Head of Global Policy and Advocacy, International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI); and
Orville Grey, Head of Secretariat, National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Global Network, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).
COP28 concluded the first Global Stocktake (GST) of collective progress in implementing the Paris Agreement since its implementation in 2015. The preceding technical dialogue that took place in September 2023 as part of the GST found that increased adaptation action and efforts to avert, minimize, and address loss and damage are urgently needed, particularly for those who are least prepared and least able to recover from disasters. The dialogue highlighted a key finding that the adequacy and effectiveness of adaptation action are enhanced when informed by local contexts, populations and priorities.
In this context, the GCA event focused on the extent to which local governments are equipped and enabled to play a central role in transformational adaptation, and in future GST’s.