Page 9 - CIWA Climate Resilience & Mitigation Assessment

CIWA Climate Resilience & mitigation Assessment

CIWA and Climate Change
Potential investments,¹⁷ which refer to projects that will
Transboundary water resources management is a global likely or potentially be advanced to finance investments.
public good that depends on access to safe, reliable
water and resilience to extreme weather. Climate CIWA has influenced investments through facilitation of
vulnerability crosses geopolitical divides, emphasizing the investment dialogue, project scoping or identification,
need for transboundary cooperation.¹⁴ Of the approximately contribution to an analysis enabling project preparation
300 internationally shared river basins worldwide, more than (feasibility studies, pre-feasibility studies, diagnostics,
60 are shared among 44 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. All and environmental and social impact assessments
mainland SSA countries share at least one international [ESIAs], transaction negotiations, and development of
freshwater body. While it is widely acknowledged that investments plans). While CIWA focuses on studies and
managing international waters has created opportunities for institutions that inform and plan investments, it is not an
fostering regional economic and political integration through investment program. Through these actions, CIWA has
cooperative development, the added complexity of influenced investments that are implemented both by the
cooperative WRM and development can also lead to tension World Bank and external partners. However, the potential of
and suboptimal utilization of shared public goods. Climate CIWA activities to influence investments can be greater than
change is a conflict multiplier, and water scarcity during regional and country capacities to implement them,
droughts has been a direct source of small-scale violent indicating that CIWA needs to ensure that there is both
conflicts between pastoralists and others throughout SSA. willingness and capacity in the region to leverage investment
opportunities cultivated by its work. CIWA also strengthens
CIWA interventions linked to climate resilience are regional institutions while providing targeted support to
designed as part of river basin planning frameworks and strengthen national institutional capacity to enable
aligned with regional climate change strategies. CIWA countries’ engagement in regional cooperation. Together,
supports Sub-Saharan governments, RBOs, and other these have contributed to enabling transboundary water
partners to unlock the potential for sustainable, climate- cooperation in challenging environments by creating spaces
resilient growth through cooperative water resources and knowledge to inform discussions on investments.
management and development. CIWA’s work is highly
aligned with both World Bank and regional partner In several regions, CIWA has contributed to the strategic
strategies for climate change resilience (such as the identification of prioritized regional investments, some of
Intergovernmental Authority on Development [IGAD]’s which have been mobilized. This is notably the case in the
Regional Strategy 2021-2025, the SADC Climate Change Nile River Basin, where CIWA contributed to the
Strategy and Action Plan 2020-2023, and the African Union development of the Nile Equatorial Lakes Investment
Climate Change and Resilient Development Strategy and Program, which prioritized 28 investments based on agreed
Action Plan 2022-2032). CIWA grants directly influence the country criteria and the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI)’s regional
design of regional operations that contribute to addressing data services. The same is true for the Zambezi River Basin,
climate change, and in 2024 CIWA began requiring all where CIWA contributed to the development of the Zambezi
recipient-executed projects to satisfy the World Bank’s Strategic Plan, which prioritizes 23 transboundary
approach to the Paris Agreement, a treaty that was investments and 80 national investments. In some basins,
adopted in 2015 at the United Nations Climate Change CIWA has strengthened the institutional capacities of RBOs
Conference (COP21) in Paris. World Bank financing to carry out their investment functions. For example,
operations are assessed for Paris treaty alignment, and following CIWA technical support, both IGAD and the
method guidance notes have been developed to streamline Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) have, for the first time,
the process for all financing instruments used by the Bank.¹⁵ managed water resources management investment
Climate risks are transboundary in nature, both from feasibility studies and ESIAs. Table 3 and Annex 4 provide
potential impacts due to climate change and responses to lists of CIWA-influenced mitigation and resilience
climate change,¹⁶ therefore, efforts to support sustainable investments. Notably, these lists are underestimates, as
resilience must anticipate the cross-boundary impacts, some CIWA-influenced investment plans, such as the Niger
consequences, and needs. Broadly, CIWA contributes to Climate Resilience Investment Plan (CRIP), point to large sets
climate change mitigation and resilience by delivering of potential investments that are yet to be fully identified.
knowledge and institution-strengthening activities for
improved regional capacity to initiate the design and To inform its engagement in African international waters,
planning of climate-resilient regional water investments CIWA undertook this strategic assessment of the scope of
(that are then implemented through other projects). climate resilience and mitigation in its cumulative portfolio
to identify opportunities, value proposition, and risks. Since
CIWA considers investments to be influenced when it has its inception, CIWA has prioritized and implemented work to
provided means to unlock future investments and/or address the consequences and causes of climate change in
influence the progress of a project. Influenced investments transboundary water management and development and
are captured under the program’s development objectives, regional water security more broadly, however, it lacked a
with Objective 1 capturing the value of influenced systematic view of its climate resilience and mitigation work.
investments and Objective 2 capturing the number of direct In FY23, CIWA’s Advisory Committee agreed to seek—and
beneficiaries from these influenced investments. There are was granted—an extension of the CIWA Trust Fund until 2031
two types of influenced investments: and endorsed a new CIWA operation pipeline. The new
pipeline and CIWA 2.0 approach will implement the lessons
Mobilized investments, which refer to all planned and learned from this assessment. It is anticipated that this
actual investment financing that is incorporated into a assessment will inform the new CIWA pipeline and that future
formal and public or verifiable financial planning process. mid-term evaluations will build on this analysis.

¹⁴ Birkmann J., et.al., 2021 Regional clusters of vulnerability show the need for transboundary cooperation. Environ. Res. Lett. 16 094052
¹⁵ World Bank Paris Alignment Method for: (i) Development Policy Financing; (ii) Investment Project Financing; (iii) Program for Results
¹⁶ Simpson et al., A framework for complex climate change risk assessment. Volume 4, Issue 4, 23 April 2021.
¹⁷ A potential investment influenced by CIWA is only counted toward results once a feasibility or pre-feasibility study is completed, estimates the value and 07
number of expected beneficiaries, and is endorsed by a governing body such as a relevant Council of Ministers.