Scaling-up Ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) measures in rural Latin America

Latin American countries are severely affected by impacts of climate change and associated extreme weather events. The project increases the resilience of vulnerable communities and ecosystems in rural areas of the partner countries. To this end, it develops and implements proven, innovative and cost-effective EbA approaches in different ecosystems. It also strengthens the capacity of a wide range of actors, including national and local government and civil society organisations, the private sector, service providers and rural communities. It also embeds EbA practices into the revised NDCs, sectoral plans and national adaptation plans to better achieve national adaptation goals. The project ensures long-term impact in partner countries through, among other things, the (further) development of innovative financial instruments and products, improved governance and knowledge exchange.

Project data

Countries: Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala
IKI funding: 20,000,000.00 €
Included preparation phase: 516,929.90 €
Duration: 11/2020 till 07/2026
Status: open
Implementing organisation: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Political Partner: Diverse climate change relevant institutions in the respective partner countries/Diverse klimarelevante Institutionen in den entsprechenden Partnerländern

Ministry of Environment - Ecuador

Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) - Costa Rica

Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) - Guatemala
Implementing Partner: International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) - Switzerland

Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) - Costa Rica
Online: https://www.ebalac.com/

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State of implementation/results

With a broad range of representatives of partner institutions “Sustainability Strategy” workshops were carried out in Costa Rica and Guatemala to identify concrete actions that ensure an efficient transition and delivery of processes to the responsible institutions.
In November 2024 key representatives from regulatory authorities, insurance sector and relevant ministries from Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Guatemala met in Quito to discuss the future of climate risk insurance, which led to the identification of proposals to advance climate risk insurances in Latin America.
During the Latin American Forum on Impact Investment for Central America and the Caribbean in November 2024 the project highlighted the importance of climate finance and tools to measure risks related to climate change. Local entrepreneurs participated and shared their experience on starting a business with seed capital from the Development Banking System and on innovations in times of climate change.
EbA measures have been implemented by 12.886 vulnerable land users on 3909 ha of land, and more than US$3.5 million for the implementation of EbA measures were leveraged from public and private institutions.

The Costa Rican Development Bank System (SBD) has established special credit programs to finance EbA measures in the agricultural, livestock (10 Mio USD) and tourism (2 Mio USD) sectors.
Communities of the rural canton Pococí have seen the potential of Biological Corridors to increase local resilience and are moving forward in creating the new Biological Corridor “La Suerte-Desenredo” in the Caribbean region, which faces severe impacts from climate change, together with authorities and with support from the EbA LAC project.

The objective of a project promoted by the local organization Maquita together with EbA LAC is to facilitate access to finance, in order to promote sustainable businesses and improve the income for families in the most climate-vulnerable rural communities in Manabí. Four local bank cooperatives were recognized for working on their green credit products and received funding from the Savings and Loan Cooperative Financoop.

Local governors and department delegates of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Guatemala identified forest ecosystem restauration initiatives throughout the country, which were linked to climate change adaptation needs.
Together with the governor of Chimaltenango 16 mayors and government agencies were brought together to discuss the promotion of actions that have the potential to decrease the vulnerability to climate change. In Quiché and Baja Verapaz EbA LAC empowered indigenous mayors and other community actors through the provision of practical tools for decision making and effective territorial governance while implementing ecosystem-based adaptation measures.

Latest Update:
05/2025