Summary

Through the project “Enhancing Montenegro’s capacity to integrate climate change risks into planning”, implemented by the UNDP Office in Montenegro with the support of the Green Climate Fund and in cooperation with the Government of Montenegro, it is envisaged that Montenegro will strengthen its institutional framework, expand technical capacities of those responsible and involved in climate change adaptation planning, improve the information base needed for effective decision-making and define a resource mobilization strategy. Identified priority sectors in the process of adaptation to climate change in Montenegro include agriculture, water, health and tourism. The National Adaptation Plan (NAP) is both a document and a process that helps countries implement comprehensive medium- and long-term climate change adaptation planning, using scientific research and facts. The purpose of the NAP drafting process itself is to provide assessments of vulnerability and risk from climate change, and, after they have been identified, to define potential measures for their mitigation. The very process of drafting and developing the NAP aims to make people, places, ecosystems and the economy more resilient to the impacts of climate change.

Background

The climate change poses serious, wide-ranging risks to economies, societies and ecosystems. Reducing these risks requires action to sharply reduce greenhouse gas emissions (mitigation), combined with measures to increase resilience to the impacts that occur (adaptation). Through the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) opportunities are created to ensure a more sustainable, equitable and prosperous future for all. Relying on the cooperation with national stakeholders and in close cooperation with the Government of Montenegro, a stocktaking exercise to inform the development of an adaptation process concluded that water, agriculture, tourism and health sectors were the initial priority sectors for intervention.

Despite the actions taken and progress made so far in prioritizing adaptation planning within policy and institutional frameworks, several gaps and barriers limiting functioning and effective adaptation planning process were identified: 

1. The coordination framework for adaptation planning and action are partially established but not performing;

2. Limited institutional and technical capacity at the national and sectoral level to address climate change through adaptation;

3. Adequate information required for conducting informed and effective;

4. National and alternative sources of finance to fund adaptation investments are not optimized as the full costs of adaptation are not yet known.

Project landing page: www.napmontenegro.me