NATIONAL ADAPTATION PLAN

Objective of the NAP
The agreed objectives of the NAP process are:
(a) Reduce vulnerability to the climate change impacts by building adaptive capacity and resilience.
(b) Facilitate the integration of climate change adaptation, in a coherent manner, into relevant new and existing policies, and programs and activities, in particular, development planning processes and strategies, within all relevant sectors and at different levels, as appropriate.
(Source: UNFCCC, Decision 5/CP.17, paragraph 1, 2011)
Adaptation planning under the UNFCCC

- A decade ago, the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC established the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) in 2011 to facilitate effective adaptation planning in the LDCs and other developing countries.
- The Paris Agreement decided that all parties should communicate their priorities, plans, actions, and requirements for any support through adaptation communications.
- The institutional arrangements for developing and implementing NAPs within a country vary and will be driven by national circumstances and priorities. Thus, the structure and form of the NAPs produced under the UNFCCC NAP process will vary by country.
NAPs under the Paris Agreement
The Paris Agreement decided to address both mitigation and adaptation, as climate change impacts are bound to continue for extended periods, even if countries immediately reduce their GHG emissions to zero; furthermore, the damages caused by climate change are expected to worsen in the future.
You can find information on the new elements and dimensions in the area of adaptation under the Paris Agreement (Article 7) in the UNFCCC website.
Paris Agreement and nationally determined contributions (NDCs)
(Source: UNFCCC)
Conceptual linkages between NAPs and NDCs

National Adaptation Plans
The NAP is a key documentation for identifying the medium- and long-term national adaptation needs, relevant policy measures, steps, and challenges based on an understanding of the impacts and risks of climate change in each country. It is also a key component for establishing long-term global response to climate change to protect people, livelihoods, and ecosystems.
The UNFCCC COP established the NAP process at COP16 in 2010 to enable the parties to formulate and implement their NAPs. The NAP Guidelines were agreed upon at COP17 (Durban, South Africa, 2011). The Paris Agreement was adopted at COP21 (Paris, 2015) and it formally entered into force in November 2016. It promotes countries to submit information on the adverse effects of and adaptation to climate change.
Addressing domestic needs, parties are now encouraged to scale up the development and implementation of their NAPs to advance adaptation actions and resilience-building.
Formulation of NAPs
The process of formulating and implementing NAPs includes the following four major elements, as contained in the initial guidelines adopted by the COP.


As indicated in the initial guidelines adopted at COP 17, the technical guidelines are framed around the four elements of the NAP process: laying the groundwork and addressing gaps; preparatory elements; implementation strategies; and reporting, monitoring, and reviewing. Technical guidelines do not follow a definite prescription, and countries can decide on specific steps for their national processes. They are developed to enhance the coherence of adaptation and development planning within countries, rather than duplicating efforts that are already undertaken or are underway. Moreover, they are intended to facilitate country-owned, country-driven actions that seek to harness and build upon national-level capacity, with support from various partners, as appropriate. The guidelines are designed to allow countries to monitor and review them regularly and update their NAPs iteratively.
Status of the NAP formulation
Status of the formulation and implementation of NAPs
- Paris Agreement (as of mid-October)
- 191/197
191 parties out of the 197 parties to the Convention are parties to the Paris Agreement
▶ Paris Agreement (UNFCCC)
- 191/197
- Submitted NDC
- 191
192 Parties have submitted their first NDCs.
13 Parties have submitted their second NDCs.
* There are currently 191 Parties to the Paris Agreement. Eritrea has submitted its first NDC, but has not yet become a Party to the Paris Agreement.
▶ NDC Registry (UNFCCC)
- 191
- Submitted NAP
- 126/154
At least 126 of the 154 developing countries had undertaken activities related to the process to formulate and implement NAPs
(As of end of August 2021) - 7 LDCs and 17 other developing countries had completed and submitted their NAPs on NAP Central
(As of end of August 2021)
▶ NAP Central (UNFCCC)
- 126/154
Monitoring the formulation progress of NAPs
United Nation agencies and related organizations are following the progress of NAP formulation and implementation by each party. The LDCs Expert Group (LEG), established in 2001 as one of the primary pillars under the UNFCCC to support the LDCs to address the adverse impacts of climate change, is mandated to provide technical guidance and support to formulate and implement NAPs among its various other activities. The LEG produces an annual progress report on the process of formulation and implementation of NAPs, thus, serving as an official documentation of progress. Additionally, it assists the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) of the UNFCCC actions in assessing the NAP progress.
The COP conducted progress assessments in 2015 and 2018. However, the available information is insufficient to assess whether the development of the NAPs has reduced vulnerability, thus, highlighting the need to address these gaps. The next assessment by the COP has been planned to be undertaken no later than 2025 (Decision 8/CP.24, paragraph 19).
List of NAPs and relevant contributions by the selected UNFCCC Parties
Country | NDC![]() |
NAP![]() |
NAPA![]() |
TNA![]() |
---|
- NDCsNationally Determined Contributions
- In the Paris Agreement signed in 2015, 196 Parties (countries) agreed to set long-term goals to increase their ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience. The NDCs are a core element of this Agreement and are critical for the achievement of these long-term goals. Specifically, they embody the post-2020 climate actions or efforts made by each country to adapt to the impacts of climate change. The Paris Agreement (in Article 4, paragraph 2) requires each Party to outline and communicate these efforts.
- The Paris Agreement
https://unfccc.int/files/meetings/paris_nov_2015/application/pdf/paris_agreement_english_.pdf
- NAPANational Adaptation Programmes of Action
- The least developed countries (LDC) work program, established under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2001, include the national adaptation programmes of action (NAPAs) for supporting LDCs in addressing the challenges posed by climate change, given their particular vulnerability. NAPAs are action-oriented, country-driven, flexible, and based on national circumstances. Their document mainly contains a list of ranked priority adaptation activities and projects as well as short profiles of each activity, designed to facilitate the development of project proposals for implementation of the NAPA. Priority sectors (or areas) addressed in the NAPAs are agriculture and food security, water resources, coastal zones, and early warning and disaster management. Once a NAPA has been submitted to the UNFCCC secretariat, the LDC Party is eligible to access funding from the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF), managed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), for the implementation of the NAPA. The GEF agency works closely with the country during each successive step of the LDCF cycle, and ultimately supports the country in implementing the project.
- NAPsNational Adaptation Plans
- The national adaptation plan (NAP) process was established under the Cancun Adaptation Framework. It enables Parties to formulate and implement NAPs as a means of identifying medium- and long-term adaptation needs, and developing and implementing strategies and programs to address those needs. It is a continuous, progressive, and iterative process, which follows a country-driven, gender-sensitive, participatory, and fully transparent approach.
- The Cancun Adaptation Framework
https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2010/cop16/eng/07a01.pdf - <UNFCCC> NAPs from developing countries submitted through UNFCCC(NAP Central).
<Others> Other relevant outputs and outcomes related to the process to formulate and implement NAPs.
- TNATechnology Needs Assessment
- The TNAs are a long-standing process under the UNFCCC. Since 2001, more than 80 developing countries have undertaken them to assess their technological needs and address climate change. The Green Climate Fund (GCF) secretariat identifies developing countries' NDCs and TNAs as important reference points for GCF programming. While the TNA process has multiple aims, its principle objective is to support developing countries to enhance the implementation of climate technology projects and programs. Almost all Parties conducted this process with the help of a national ministry. Most technologies for adaptation in the agricultural sector were related to crop management. Specifically, the biotechnologies, involving the development of newer drought-resistant, salient-tolerant, and short-maturing varieties, were allocated the highest priority.
Table of target sectors indicated in national adaptation plan
This table summarises the key sectors indicated in the adaptation plans of countries in the Asia-Pacific area.
Agriculture | Food | Marine and/or Coastal zones | Energy | Forestry | Health | Infrastructure | Water | Land use | Fisheries | Tourism | Waste and Sanitation | Biodiversity | Industry | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cambojia | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||||||
Fiji | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||
India | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||||||
Indonesia | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||
Lao | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||||
Malaysia | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||||||
Thailand | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||
Samoa | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||||
Micornesia | ● | |||||||||||||
Nauru | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||
Myanmer | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||
Niue | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||
Singapore | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||||
Solomon Island | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||
Tonga | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ||||
Tuvalu | ● | |||||||||||||
Vanuatu | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | |||||||||
Vietnam | ● | ● | ● | ● |