An initiative to strengthen Nepal’s response to climate change at the local level has been launched in Kathmandu through the UN Capital Development Fund’s Local Climate Adaptive Living (LoCAL) Facility, in collaboration with Nepal’s Ministry of Forests and Environment and supported by the Governments of Australia and Sweden. The programme aims to help local governments finance and implement practical climate adaptation measures, particularly in communities highly vulnerable to floods, droughts, landslides, and other extreme weather events.
The initiative will channel performance-based climate resilience grants directly to local governments, enabling them to invest in priority areas such as climate-resilient agriculture, water systems, and infrastructure aligned with Nepal’s National Adaptation Plan and Nationally Determined Contributions. In its first phase, five rural municipalities in Lumbini Province will receive an initial allocation of US$925,000, with potential scaling up to US$1.9 million over two fiscal years, focusing on one of the country’s key climate “hot spot” regions.
By integrating climate finance into Nepal’s existing public financial management and intergovernmental transfer systems, the LoCAL Facility aims to strengthen local planning, improve accountability, and ensure more efficient delivery of adaptation funding. The approach supports a broader shift toward locally led climate action, empowering communities and local authorities to respond more effectively to growing climate risks while building long-term resilience into national development planning.
