The third and final series of the Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change – Cost Benefit Analysis Workshop, focusing on the coastal sector pilot demonstration projects, is currently underway in Apia, Samoa.
The week-long training at the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) brought together representatives of the PACC project and other interested participants to help determine which climate change adaptation options they are implementing will confer the greatest benefits for their island communities.
In his opening speech SPREP Director General, Mr David Sheppard said, "Cost benefit analysis is a framework which can help us to logically and systematically work through the various issues that need to be considered when developing and evaluating our PACC projects. It can help us select projects that are sound and that will deliver maximum benefits to Pacific Island communities."
He added that with the CBA, participants can identify which pilot projects have been successful and should be replicated and which projects have not been so successful and should not be replicated.
"CBA is very useful in helping your countries decide whether a donor project idea is a good one and should be accepted or whether it should be given the "thumbs down". It can also help in developing 'evidence-based' project proposal submissions to donors that are more likely to be supported."
At the end of the week, participants hope to gain a basic understanding of the CBA framework and a clear idea about how to progress such an analysis in their various projects.
"For us in the Cook Islands the CBA together with the completed Geo-Spatial Survey Assessment will greatly assist our communities and other stakeholders to identify the best adaptation options for our pilot site in Mangaia, especially as we come into the critical phase of implementation this year." - PACC Cook Islands National Coordinator, Mr Vaipo Mataora.
"We are at the stages of finalising our Demonstration Guideline and the CBA will greatly input to this. With two more demonstrations left for Samoa, the CBA will help refine these plans." -PACC Samoa National Coordinator, Ms Moira Faletutulu.
"Looking at the project itself, we will want to measure its success or otherwise. So in order for us to progress, we will need to look at some type of analysis that will enable us to move on, and because the idea behind this is to replicate the project to the other islands in FSM, this is something for us to use as a baseline to determine whether the project is realistic, if it is worth approaching donors for funding and of course, whether it is benefiting the people with respect to dealing with climate change impacts." -PACC Federated States of Micronesia coordinator, Mr Simpson Abraham.
The need to include CBA in the PACC project was acknowledged by SPREP member countries at the 2nd PACC Multipartite Review meeting held in August 2011.
The workshop will run from 6 to 9 February 2012 and is organised by the United Nations Development Programme and SPREP in partnership with GIZ (Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) and the Pacific Islands Applied Geosciences Commission, Secretariat of the Pacific Community.
The PACC Project consists of 14 member countries; it is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP). It is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Australian Agency for International Development with support from United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Climate Change Capacity Development (C3D+) Programme.