Country Priorities

To create a successful GCF proposal, the project must be deeply rooted in your country’s specific context and strategic priorities. Each nation in the diverse Asia-Pacific region faces a unique set of climate vulnerabilities, development challenges, and policy goals. This section provides country-specific summaries of key climate priorities drawn directly from official national documents, including GCF Country Programmes, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). Use these documents as a starting point to ensure your project is strategically aligned with your country's agenda, a critical step for demonstrating country ownership and securing endorsement.
A common challenge for many Asia-Pacific countries is translating high-level national climate priorities into well-structured, investment-ready project concepts that meet the GCF's rigorous funding criteria. This gap is often compounded by limited institutional capacity, a lack of coordination across government ministries, and technical barriers such as insufficient climate risk data. A project proposal that is disconnected from a country's established strategy is unlikely to gain the necessary national endorsement or GCF approval.
In the Annex of the GCF Concept Note Development Guidebook, we summarize key climate priorities for nations across the Asia-Pacific. These profiles are compiled from the most recent national documents available at the time of writing. By consulting these summaries, project developers can quickly understand their country's priority sectors, key vulnerabilities, and strategic adaptation and mitigation goals. This information is essential for designing a project that is not only relevant but also demonstrates strong alignment with national policy, a core GCF investment criterion.
Please note that these national documents are periodically updated. For the most current and detailed information, you should always consult the official UNFCCC repositories for the latest NDCs and NAPs, or the GCF website for Country Programmes. Additionally, the Status of Adaptation in Asia-Pacific page on AP-PLAT provides an accessible overview of adaptation planning documents across the region.

Country Programmes and NDCs are two country specific documents that can be used as a starting point to ensure your project is strategically aligned with your country's agenda. Alignment with these documents is a critical requirement for any GCF proposal. It ensures that projects are strategically relevant, supported by national policies, and have the political and institutional backing necessary for successful implementation and long-term sustainability. A proposal that lacks clear alignment may fail to receive the mandatory "no-objection letter" from the NDA, leading to delays or outright rejection.
To demonstrate strong alignment, you must integrate specific, direct references to these documents throughout your Concept Note. Use policy-relevant language, referencing the exact name, date, and priority areas of the relevant national documents. Also, integrate the Country Programmes and NDCs across sections. This information should appear in multiple sections of the Concept Note. The table below provides several examples of explicit reference to national document to be used when writing the concept note. For example, phrases such as “This project directly responds to Priority Area 2 of [Country]’s Country Programme” or “The proposed intervention supports the implementation of the 2020 NDC, particularly its energy sector mitigation target” clearly show how the project fits within existing priorities.