LIFE-AR @ COP31

The announcement of the LIFE-AR Facility during COP31 marks the moment the LDC Group takes full ownership of the initiative built to deliver its 2050 Vision, a vision for all LDCs to be on climate-resilient development pathways by 2030 and to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

Convening high level representation of LDCs implementing LIFE-AR, and other LDCs along with representatives of development partners and philanthropic funders and representatives of COP Presidencies, this event will aim to:

• Celebrate six years of progress and evidence from LIFE-AR's work across ten LDCs,
• Mark the official announcement of the LIFE-AR Facility as an LDC-led institution, at the highest political level,
• Lay out the LDC Group's vision for scaling locally led adaptation finance in the face of overwhelming and growing need,
• Reinforce the case for LDC ownership of climate finance delivery as a model for wider reform of the global adaptation finance architecture.

This year's climate crises around the world have highlighted the importance of well-planned adaptation. This event will explore long-term institutional and capability strengthening and locally led adaptation as the foundation of lasting climate resilience in LDCs and the roles of NAPs in supporting country-led responses in Africa. It will draw on direct country experience to show what effective, locally led adaptation looks like in practice and feeds into national priorities. It will combine lived experience with policy insight to inform the wider adaptation finance debate at COP31.

With the Africa Resilience Collaborative

Africa does not lack resilience solutions; too many remain fragmented, under-resourced and unable to reach scale. From Shock to Scale is an interactive Africa Resilience Solutions Lab exploring what must change in how resilience is financed, governed and delivered. Moving beyond a conventional panel, the session combines a lived resilience story, rapid African solution showcases, an audience-led resilience financing challenge and a “solution-to-scale” exchange with philanthropy, finance and policy actors.

Recognising both the urgency of climate risks and the progress made to date, the Dialogue will invite participants to showcase successful adaptation efforts and share lessons learned on how adaptation action is already delivering benefits for communities, development and prosperity. It will explore opportunities to accelerate adaptation action by translating plans, priorities and targets into effective action on the ground, including through the implementation of NAPs. It will also identify systems, finance, mechanisms, or approaches that could be better leveraged to advance adaptation implementation and overcome persisting barriers.

Successive COP Presidencies have launched high-profile initiatives to accelerate delivery, yet the durability and success of these initiatives once the presidency hands over have been uneven. As Ethiopia prepares to assume the COP32 Presidency, and as COP31 itself has placed a “Climate Implementation Bridge” among its ten priority themes, this session aims to assess the design choices, institutional anchor, dedicated finance, and public accountability and determined whether presidential initiatives have outlived the presidency. The session's findings are intended to feed into preparations for COP32, to ensure there is learning from what works and what does not.

The 90-minute event will look at how country platforms can help mobilise finance for climate, nature and development priorities. It will also showcase Angola's progress on its National Climate Finance Plan.