PUTTING WATER INTEGRITY AT THE HEART OF CLIMATE WORK FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE AND EFFECTIVE ADAPTATION
DATES
2018-Current
LOCATION(S)
Global
PARTNERS
Green Climate Fund, Transparency International, GIZ, IWMI
WHAT IT'S ABOUT
The climate crisis is also a water crisis. Extreme weather events such as droughts, floods, and storms, as well as other major climatic changes, are directly connected to water. Water is also at the heart of climate adaptation. The water and related sectors already receive the most funds for climate adaptation purposes.
With vast sums of money being invested into climate change adaptation, billions of dollars are flowing through new channels, some of them relatively untested, and into the water sector - a sector which is already vulnerable to corruption because of its fragmentation, technical complexity, and the essential, irreplaceable nature of the services it provides.
Corruption and poor integrity in climate-related finance pose significant risks for the water sector. Not only do they result in financial losses, they contribute to poor design and implementation of adaptation measures and directly impact people’s lives, health, and livelihoods, as well as socio-economic development and environmental sustainability. They also hit hardest in the most vulnerable communities.
Integrity needs to be built into every way that we choose to respond to the climate crisis, including the ways in which we protect water resources and safeguard the human rights to water and sanitation. From big funders to local communities, integrity readiness is key to ensure resilience of the sector and of communities, especially those most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
We are bringing together organisations committed to strengthening integrity in climate action in the water and sanitation sectors. Together we are researching maladaptation and integrity risks in climate adaptation, raising awareness, and supporting the development of social accountability mechanisms to monitor climate action in the water sector.
IN DIALOGUE
An exchange of ideas between the former Head of the Independent Integrity Unit at the Green Climate Fund (GCF), Mr. Ibrahim Pam, and WIN’s Executive Director, Barbara Schreiner, on how damaging the lack of integrity in the water sector can be and what to do about it.
PUBLICATIONS
WIN's climate approach:
On maladaptation:
On climate finance and integrity readiness:
On the need for integrity in national adaptation plans: