SOAS Centre for Sustainable Finance Delivers Capacity Building on the Economics and Finance of Climate Change Adaptation for Rwandan Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning
The Resilience and Adaptation Mainstreaming Program (RAMP) convened its third practitioner training course on the economics and finance of climate change adaptation in collaboration with faculty from the University of Rwanda.
Kigali, 3 October 2024 – Held in Kigali from 30 September to 3 October, the foundations course brought together a diverse group of 35 participants for four days of intensive learning and exchange on a broad range of topics, including issues such as the macrocriticality of climate change, macro modelling and data challenges, climate-sensitive budgeting and budget tagging, and adaptation finance.
The course was tailored to the needs of officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN), the Ministry of Environment (MoE) and the Rwanda Green Fund. It was also attended by officials from the Rwanda Environment Management Authority and the Rwanda Forestry Authority.
Dr Harald Heubaum and Dr Jonathan Acosta Smith jointly delivered the sessions together with selected University of Rwanda faculty. This is a fundamental part of the RAMP approach: strengthening and supporting university partners to collectively build long-term capacity in central ministries responsible for financing, planning and implementing suitable macro-level adaptation actions.
In addition, three senior MINECOFIN officials contributed their expertise through interventions focused on the macroeconomic dimensions of climate impacts and modelling, climate-sensitive public investment management, and Rwanda’s experience with innovative financial instruments such as the Rwanda Green Fund FONERWA and Rwanda’s issuance of sustainability-linked bonds.
This foundations course was the third in a series of training courses offered to civil servants in central ministries in key RAMP partner countries across sub-Saharan Africa. They are part of RAMP’s effort to help mainstream climate adaptation into the core capacities and operations of central ministries, supporting governments to align and effectively pursue their adaptation and development priorities, as well as access adaptation finance.
Dr Harald Heubaum, Deputy Academic Director of the RAMP University Network, highlighted lessons learned: “With three successful foundations courses delivered so far, we have established a working model upon which to build further as we take the RAMP approach to other partner countries.” Dr Jonathan Acosta Smith emphasised the strong cooperation between RAMP experts, local university faculty and ministerial officials in Rwanda: “Co-developing and -delivering this course helped us address the actual needs and interests of our participants. That is how we ensure learning has meaning and can help colleagues in their day-to-day activities.”
The RAMP University Network is a key part of the Resilience Adaptation Mainstreaming Program (RAMP), which was conceived and established jointly by the World Resources Institute and the SOAS Centre for Sustainable Finance. The objective of RAMP is to accelerate climate adaptation in developing countries by building capacity in ministries of finance, planning and economics, to understand, plan for, and finance climate adaptation actions.
