The Government of Iraq, in partnership with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), has launched a process for the development of a National Adaptation Plan (NAP) to build the country’s resilience to climate change.

The NAP process aims to reduce vulnerability to the negative impacts of climate change, especially in developing countries, through strategic planning based on projections of future climate change.

Funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) with more than $2.5 million (£1.9m), the three-year project will support Iraq in formulating and implementing its NAP, with a particular focus on strengthening institutional, technical and financial capacities.

A key aspect of Iraq’s NAP process is to identify, assess and bridge existing gaps in climate knowledge as they constitute barriers to long term planning across local, regional and national planning processes.

Sami Dimassi, UNEP’s Regional Director and Representative in West Asia said: “The impacts of climate change on development in Iraq are already being experienced. This new project aims to reduce vulnerability to the impacts of climate change by strengthening the country’s adaptive capacity and preparing the ground for future adaptation planning and projects.

“UNEP is proud to be the executing entity for the project and remains deeply committed to its core mandate of facilitating environmental governance and working with the Government of Iraq to ensure the NAP process allows for building back better.”