Support programme on scaling up climate ambition on land use and agriculture through NDCs and National Adaptation Plans (SCALA)

With climate change threatening the agriculture sectors, livelihoods and food security, there is an urgent need for scaled action to cope with climate-related impacts. In response to that, SCALA supports 12 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America to both build adaptive capacity and to implement low emission priorities in agriculture and land use. The programme uses a multi-stakeholder approach, harnessing strong engagement from the private sector and key national institutions. National activities focus on strengthening policies, appraising and adopting innovative approaches, as well as removing key barriers related to information gaps, governance, finance, gender mainstreaming and integrated monitoring and reporting. The ultimate goal is for countries to turn agricultural related priorities laid out in their National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) into action.

Project data

Countries: Argentina, Cambodia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Ethiopia, Mongolia, Nepal, Senegal, Thailand, Uganda
IKI funding: 26,000,000.00 €
Duration: 11/2019 till 12/2028
Status: open
Implementing organisation: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Political Partner: Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Equipement - Senegal

Ministries of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry - Mongolia

Ministry for Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD) - Senegal

Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries - Uganda

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries - Cambodia

Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (MAGyP) - Argentina

Ministry of Agriculture & Land Reclamation - Egypt

Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives - Thailand

Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock - Costa Rica

Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development - Nepal

Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources - Ethiopia

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - Colombia

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - Cote d 'Ivoire

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MEFCC) – Ethiopia*

Ministry of Environment (MoE) - Cambodia

Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) - Costa Rica

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MinAmbiente) - Colombia

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development - Argentina*

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development - Côte d’Ivoire

Ministry of Environment and Tourism – Mongolia; Ministry of Environment MoE - Egypt; Ministry of Forests and Environment - Nepal; Ministry of Water and Environment - Uganda; Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning - ONEP - Thailand; Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries - Argentina; Undersecretariat of Environment and Sustainable Development - Argentina
Implementing Partner: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Online: http://www.fao.org/in-action/scala/en

https://www.adaptation-undp.org/scala

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State of implementation/results

SCALA supports countries in identifying and prioritising options for transformative climate action in national plans and in strengthening capacities for evidence-based decision-making. All countries are conducting Systemic Landscape Assessments (SLAs) to close information gaps for implementing climate priorities in the agriculture sector and to mobilise finance. Examples include:
- Cambodia: In collaboration with the Royal University of Agriculture (RUA), SCALA developed strategies to strengthen the resilience of smallholders and communities through more sustainable livestock farming. In addition, deforestation-related products such as cashew and cassava were identified in Steung Treng Province, and measures for gender-responsive, climate-resilient, and profitable value chains were proposed.
- Côte d’Ivoire: Identified gender-responsive, climate-resilient practices for sustainable cashew and cassava value chains, assessed their profitability, and highlighted private sector investment potentials.
- Mongolia: Improved climate resilience of local communities by evaluating the potential of surface water collection facilities, with a focus on livestock and crop farming.
- Egypt: The impact of climate change on the economy and women-headed households led to identified measures to address gender-specific climate risks.
Outcome 2: Strengthening governance and integration of agriculture and land-use priorities
SCALA strengthens governance mechanisms by promoting stakeholder participation and empowering the institutions responsible for implementing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) to mainstream agriculture and land-use priorities into planning, budgeting, monitoring, and reporting. Examples include:
Integration into national plans:
- Nepal: Integration of climate issues into the Agriculture Development Strategy (ADS).
- Thailand: Progress-tracking framework for the Climate and Agriculture Action Plan (2023–2027).
- Egypt, Thailand, Uganda: Promoting policy coherence between food systems and climate action.
Capacity Development:
- Trainings for local government planners on NDC and NAP integration (Ethiopia).
- Trainings on gender-responsive climate budgeting (Mongolia).
- Capacity-building package for climate-resilient agriculture (Nepal).
Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E):
- Trainings on M&E and MRV systems in line with UNFCCC requirements.
- Development of a national M&E framework for agri-food systems (Egypt).
- Support for BTR preparation and review (Nepal).
NAP and NDC-3.0 Development:
- Social dialogues on adaptation, food security & biodiversity (Egypt).
- Active involvement in NDC-3.0 preparation in Colombia, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Mongolia, Nepal, Uganda.
- Development of gender-specific targets (Mongolia).
- Finalisation & submission of NDC-3.0 to UNFCCC (Nepal, Cambodia).
- Assessment of data management and GHG inventory systems (Senegal).
Outcome 3: Promoting private sector engagement in climate action:
Assessments:
- Investment opportunities in cashew & cassava value chains (Cambodia, Côte d’Ivoire).
- Feasibility studies on carbon offsets for sustainable forest management (Cambodia).
- Economic appraisals of investment in livestock & dairy sectors (Egypt, Uganda).
Pilots:
Certification of standards for deforestation-free beef (Costa Rica).
Standard for climate-adapted agriculture (Colombia).
Pilot on Payments for Ecosystem Services (Costa Rica).

Concept Notes:

Resilience approaches with water-energy-food nexus, and ecologically based solutions for nature and society (Ethiopia).
GCF funding proposal for a climate credit line with La Banque Agricole (Senegal).
Call for microfinance solutions in the dairy and cassava sectors (Uganda).

SCALA Private Sector Engagement Facility (PSEF):

Value chain and risk analyses (incl. Belize, Uzbekistan, Djibouti, Zambia).
Studies on financing ecosystem resilience (Zambia).
Compost study (Grenada).
Market analysis for sustainable papaya (Maldives).
Outcome: Solomon Islands joined the NDC Partnership.
Use of PSEF results for resource mobilisation and policy development is being explored.
Latest Events of relevance for SCALA:
- April 2025: Featured in the webinar on ‘Tailored waste-to-energy solutions: Understanding the sustainable investment opportunities of biogas’, which focused on country examples from The Gambia and Solomon Islands, under the Private Sector Engagement Facility.
- June 2025: Co-organised a side-event on ‘Accelerating the formulation and implementation of adaptation priorities: Leveraging NAPs, NDCs and NBSAPs for action’ with the NBSAP Accelerator Partnership at the Global NDC Conference 2025.
- June 2025: Led a breakout session on “Bridging the Gap: From Policy to Practice in EbA” during the 11th Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) Knowledge Day, organised by the Friends of EbA (FEBA) on the margins of the 2025 Bonn Climate Change Conference.
- June 2025: organised a webinar on ‘Applying the Climate Action Review (CAR) Tool to prioritise and implement adaptation solutions in agriculture and land use’, highlighting country experiences from Mongolia.
- August 2025: organised a side event at NAP Expo 2025 on ‘Leveraging synergies on nature-based solutions for NAP implementation in agrifood systems’, showcasing country examples from Senegal, Zambia and Ethiopia.
- September 2025: presented SCALA’s approach plus examples from Colombia on multi-stakeholder collaboration and from Costa Rica on sustainable soil management as part of the Agriculture Lab during the Implementation Forum as part of Climate Week 2 in Addis Ababa.
- September 2025: SCALA was featured in the information materials on display at the 2025 Standing Committee on Finance Forum at FAO HQ in Rome.
- September 2025: SCALA’s approach and results were showcased at the UNDP Pavilion during the Africa Climate Summit, in the side event ‘Adaptation in a Harsh World: How Can Communities Cope with Climate Shocks’.

Latest Update:
12/2025