The National Adaptation Plan (NAPs) Expo 2020, taking place from 30 March to 3 April in Gaborone, Botswana, brings together national and international adaptation experts and support providers to help developing countries build resilience through adaptation planning and actions.
The Expo effectively supports developing countries to formulate and implement NAPs. To date, 120 developing countries around the world have started work on their NAPs, which are the principal tool to enable countries to allocate planning and resources towards managing climate change effects such as floods or droughts.
2020 is a pivotal year in the effort to ensure that each developing country is equipped with a NAP to guide its adaptation action and safeguard its development gains. This year marks the beginning of the commitment on the part of developed countries to mobilize USD 100 billion annually to support climate action in developing countries. Having a NAP in place will help prepare countries to effectively invest these resources in building resilience across all sectors, regions and communities.
Additionally, under the terms of the Paris Agreement, countries are expected to submit their climate action plans, known as enhanced nationally determined contributions (NDCs) in 2020, and having a NAP in place to inform the adaptation elements of these commitments can help countries align these commitments to their long-term adaptation needs and priorities.
To advance the formulation and implementation of NAPs and raise adaptation ambition, the UNFCCC's Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LEG) organizes the NAP Expo, an annual outreach event that promotes the exchange of experiences and fosters partnerships between various stakeholders on how to accelerate progress in the NAP process.
Each NAP Expo aims to: promote the interaction between country NAP teams and support providers such as multilateral climate funds and bilateral agencies; create an interactive global forum on NAPs for countries to exchange mutually beneficial experiences; and serve as the preeminent global platform for driving progress on producing each country's first NAP and ensuring their effective implementation.
NAP Expo 2020 in Botswana
The overarching theme of this year's seventh global NAP Expo is "Transformations," which covers transformations across a range of elements of the adaptation process, from adaptation planning to climate risk analysis to delivery of support. This theme will be explored throughout the Expo, which will consist of a mix of plenary and thematic sessions, workshops, demos, exhibitions and networking opportunities.
NAP Expo 2020 will build on the progress made and lessons learned through the previous six NAP Expos. For example, NAP Expo 2019 showcased the ingenuity of youth-led climate initiatives, such as the Lakeshore Agro-Processors Enterprise, which collaborates with local farmers, university students and the Ministry of Agriculture in Malawi to promote climate-resilient farming practices through capacity-building and microfinance services.
Last year's Expo also highlighted the potential to bolster resilience and adaptive capacity through subnational action, such as through the creation of green spaces, promotion of urban farming, use of city waterways, integration of flood water storage, and other solutions presented by Porous City Network.
NAP Expo 2020 will once again convene government, private sector, youth and non-governmental representatives to explore a range of sub-themes relevant to advancing NAPs, such as gender responsiveness, finance and frontier technologies.