Nepal CLIMATE CHANGE SUPPORT PROGRAMME – phase 2

Remote communities under threat

“In monsoon season, some project sites were completely inaccessible for two
to three months,” says project manager Duncan Tossell. “Even in mild
weather, it could take several days trekking on foot to reach the most
remote villages.”

Duncan was describing one of the challenges faced by NCCSP2, a £23M,
five-year initiative funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth &
Development Office (FCDO). It aimed to help over 550,000 vulnerable
people in remote and rural communities adapt to rising temperatures, less
predictable rainfall resulting in both droughts and flooding, and increased
risk of landslides.

NCCSP2 supported 477 locally led climate-resilient infrastructure projects
and initiatives across 42 municipalities (known as palikas) in Nepal’s most
remote province, Karnali and Lumbini and Sudurpaschim. The programme’s
success secured a commitment from the government of Nepal / Ministry of
Forest and Environment to scale up the approach in all 753 local
governments across Nepal.

Mott MacDonald was appointed by the FCDO in 2019 to provide technical
assistance to the government of Nepal to implement NCCSP2.

NCCSP2 addressed four key problems for the FCDO and the Government of
Nepal: climate finance absorption and utilisation while strengthening Public
Finance Management (PFM); locally led adaptation and community
engagement; knowledge and expertise in the climate sector and policy
coordination across government. One of the programme’s key goals was to
improve livelihoods and the resilience of those most vulnerable,  and
especially women and other climate vulnerable and marginalised people.

Women were strongly represented on the management committee users
groups that defined and oversaw delivery and long-term management of
resilience initiatives

A systems approach

Located in western Nepal, Karnali faces the combined challenges of poverty
and the increasing physical impacts of climate change – which are closely
interconnected.

NCCSP2 focused on six types of project and leverage join-up thinking to
deliver results:

Irrigation projects have a major impact both on farmers’ incomes and
wider food security, moving away from rain-fed agriculture to more resilient
and sustainable agriculture and livelihoods. Secure year-round supplies of
water for irrigation increase the size of viable areas for cropping and enable
farmers to harvest crops throughout the year.

Drinking water projects significantly reduce the time spent collecting
water – particularly for women and girls. With easier access to clean water,
communities have more opportunities to engage in education or economic
activities, contributing to higher household productivity, income, and
wellbeing. Drinking water projects were combined with the nature-based
solutions for water source protection.

Flood control measures protect property, assets, and farmland, allowing
year-round agriculture. Improved flood control also reduces the disruptive
impact of flooding on households and businesses, prevents soil and crops
from being washed away, and boosts agricultural productivity and protection
of lives.

Slope stabilisation, employing nature-based solutions such as vegetated
walls and bunds, reduces the probability and severity of landslides,
protecting property and keeping roads open and sustainable supply chain of
services.

Road improvements with better drainage help to keep roads passable,
enabling transportation of goods and greater access to markets and supply
chains in all weathers.

Training programmes equipped almost 2,000 government officials to
identify climate risks and implement measures to improve climate resilience.

River training and reinforcement of river embankments protect farmland.

Tangible benefits

To protect against landslides in Aathbees palika, retaining ‘crib walls’ were
constructed with bamboo. Shiva Bishwokarma, chair of the local user
committee, says: “When we started working on the crib wall, we quickly
realised that it was really effective.”

“It protected the land and created greenery when the bamboo grew. This
prevented landslides. We feel a lot more secure now. I am very encouraged
by the approach of this programme.”

Locally led adaptation

One of the distinctive aspects of NCCSP2 was the strong role local
communities and institutions played in shaping which projects are
prioritised and how they are implemented.

We collaborated with local, provincial and federal governments to ensure
projects were aligned with Nepal’s LAPA process – a national framework to
channel climate finance to local communities in a transparent and
accountable way.

We supported local governments in strengthening their capacity to adopt a
systematic approach to project planning, design and governance. This was
reinforced through guidelines for integrating climate considerations into
policies and processes.

We supported palikas in establishing user committees to lead project
implementation. Women’s participation increased significantly, empowering
them to play a stronger and more influential role – within committees and
more broadly.

Vulnerable communities strengthened their resilience and ability to adapt to
climate change by receiving training on how to analyse and apply climate
data to inform evidence-based adaptation planning. These skills were then
used to support climate-resilient farming and water management
techniques.

NCCSP2 used an innovative co-financing model in which 80% of project
costs covered by the programme, 10% by local government and 10% in kind
by local communities.

Community engagement delivered powerful results. This inclusive
approach, which actively involved local communities, was adapted from the
Blue Gold flood defence and climate adaptation programme in Bangladesh,
managed by Mott MacDonald for over a decade. It has proven to be an
effective way to spread technical knowledge within local government and
communities, foster local ownership, and increase buy-in – ultimately
improving the sustainability of projects beyond the initial funding and
implementation phase.

We are applying the lessons from NCCSP2 in other initiatives.

Dr Binod Devkota, Former secretary at the Ministry for Industry, Tourism,
Forest & Environment in the province of Karnali, said: “We have
incorporated NCCSP2’s learning in other projects too. The approach
pioneered on these projects is transferable to projects in other climate
vulnerable regions.”

We have incorporated NCCSP2’s learning in other projects too. The
approach pioneered on these projects is transferable to projects in other
climate vulnerable regions.

Dr Binod Devkota

Former Secretary at the Ministry for Industry, Tourism, Forest &
Environment in Karnali

Spreading technical know-how

Providing technical support to communities in the remotest areas of western
Nepal was challenging but critical for success, said Duncan.

“The best solution was to post experts in nine cluster offices providing
technical assistance to 35 palikas. In each cluster office we had three
specialists in climate and water, agriculture and forestry, and public finance.

“These teams carried out project site visits and provided technical support
and guidance to palikas on project implementation, working through any
challenges that arose.” The teams helped control project costs and quality.

Evidence based decisions

We developed several data-based tools, climate profiles and climate
vulnerability assessment to help municipalities understand their climate
risks and make evidence-based decisions. For example, 28 user-friendly
hazard maps identified areas most at risk from floods, droughts and
landslides. This helped to design and target interventions at the most
vulnerable communities.

Rainfall and temperature data from Karnali’s 24 hydrology and meteorology
stations were also used to create climate profiles of palikas, giving
information on current and future climate trends, river flow and water
access across 35 municipalities.

We also used the climate risk index to identify the most at-risk palikas based
on the local hazard score, vulnerability and exposure. This was one of the
criteria used to allocate annual climate finance to communities in greatest
need.

“We provided Technical Assistance to the Palikas for climate resilient project
delivery as well as system strengthening at the local level especially for
mainstreaming climate change adaption and climate data in the local
policies, plan and programmes”.

Kiran Wagle

Team leader, Nepal climate change support programme

Financial accountability and Value for Money

NCCSP2 was among the few programmes in Nepal where international
funding was channelled through government systems. Climate grants were
disbursed to palikas by the federal treasury, with reimbursements made only
when projects met agreed climate adaptation outcomes.

With our support, palikas produced quarterly financial reports detailing
expenditure and demonstrating that climate adaptation projects had been
carried out and completed to a high standard. These reports provided clear
evidence that public funds were being used effectively and offered strong
value for money.

This funding model that promoted transparency, accountability and costeffectiveness. It also positioned palikas to access additional sources of
climate finance in the future – such as the Green Climate Fund, the
Adaptation Fund, the Loss and Damage Fund, and private sector financing.

NCCSP2 contributed to transformational change across the Government of
Nepal and helped to promote inclusive and equitable development –
empowering communities’ resilience and capacity to adapt to climate
change. The programme’s lessons are now being scaled and applied across
other FCDO initiatives to amplify and sustain positive impacts.