The eleventh NAP Expo opened today in Kigali, Rwanda, bringing together governments, development partners, technical experts and financial institutions to accelerate the implementation of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). Throughout the day, speakers and participants emphasized the urgent need to move from planning to implementation.
Opening the Expo, the Chair of the Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LEG), Mr. Mokoena France, welcomed participants and underscored the importance of collaboration and practical solutions. Dr. Paul Desanker of the UNFCCC secretariat highlighted the need to accelerate action, noting that “it should not take 10 years to build a NAP, we must move to implementation.” Dr. Fatmata Lovetta Sesay, UN Resident Coordinator a.i. and UNDP Resident Representative, called on countries and partners to “scale adaptation or fail resilience” while Rwanda’s Deputy Director General of the Rwanda Environment Management Authority, Mr. Faustin Munyazikwiye, encouraged participants to actively exchange knowledge so that NAPs do not “become documents left on the shelf, but living and adaptive plans” A video message from Dr. Ana Toni, CEO of the COP30 Presidency, reinforced the importance of adaptation in the lead-up to COP30.
The morning plenary featured a keynote presentation by the McKinsey Global Institute on the growing global adaptation finance gap and the rising costs of climate impacts. Presenters highlighted that adaptation costs could reach USD 1.2 trillion annually through 2050, emphasizing the need to unlock investment and strengthen the socioeconomic benefits of adaptation action.
Participants also took part in an interactive deep dive into the updated UNFCCC NAP technical guidelines and the launch of the NAP Exchange (NAPX) platform, a new machine-readable framework designed to transform NAPs into structured, traceable and implementation-ready data packages.
In the afternoon, the Expo shifted into highly interactive working sessions, where countries collaborated in breakout groups facilitated by organizations including UNDP, UNEP, FAO, UNDRR, GGGI, UNCDF and others. Through co-creation exercises and guided discussions, participants worked on translating national adaptation priorities into project concepts and investment-ready portfolios aligned with financing opportunities. As the Expo moves into Day 2, participants will continue refining these concepts and will have the opportunity to pitch their project ideas and portfolios in exchanges with potential funders and partners. Specialized clinics also explored the use of AI tools for NAP development and discussions on the Global Goal on Adaptation framework.
The day concluded with networking activities and a reception hosted by the Government of Rwanda, providing further opportunities for exchange and partnership-building among participants.
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To read about Day 2 activities, stay tuned to the NAP Expo Newsroom
All photos are courtesy of REMA and can be viewed on their online album here