Twenty-fifth meeting of the GCF Board (B.25)

The Board, recalling decision B.23/18:

1. Recognizes the current extraordinary circumstances resulting from the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus;
2. Takes note that the Co-Chairs, guided by the best interests of the GCF pursuant to paragraph 10 of the Rules of Procedure of the Board, and on an exceptional basis and in light of such current extraordinary circumstances, decided to change the venue of the twenty-fifth meeting of the Board to Geneva, Switzerland;
3. Confirms that the invocation by the Co-Chairs of paragraph 10 of the Rules of Procedure of the Board was warranted on an exceptional basis and in light of the current extraordinary circumstances;
4. Ratifies the decision of the Co-Chairs to move the venue of the twenty-fifth meeting of the Board to Geneva, Switzerland; and
5. Welcomes with appreciation the decision of the Government of Switzerland and the Canton of Geneva to host the twenty-fifth meeting of the Board at short notice.

The Board, having considered the risks relating to the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus as well as the prevailing uncertainty and current extraordinary circumstances arising out of the COVID-19 virus outbreak:

1. Recognizes its duty to act in the best interests of the GCF and its duty of care towards staff, consultants and interns of the GCF;
2. Takes note of the measures which have been put in place by the Executive Director to protect the health and welfare of GCF staff, consultants and interns, including the option for staff, consultants and interns to work remotely under special flexible working arrangements;
3. Decides to ban all GCF-related events organized by the Secretariat effective Monday, 16 March 2020 for a period of 30 calendar days;
4. Also decides that the independent units shall take the same measures with respect to recall of their respective staff, consultants and interns; official travel; and organization of events, as well as other measures relating to the response to the COVID-19 virus outbreak as those taken by the Secretariat, and in the event that the head of the relevant independent unit wishes to deviate from the measures put in place by the Secretariat, such deviation shall require the approval of the Board;
5. Authorizes the Executive Director to explore options for hosting a core group of up to 35 Secretariat staff in partner organizations in the event that alternative working arrangements need to be put in place in response to the COVID-19 virus outbreak, without establishing a second formal country presence of the GCF, on the basis of the following criteria:
   1. The willingness or expression of interest of prospective partner organizations to host a core group of GCF personnel on a temporary basis in its network of offices;
   2. The existence of a bilateral agreement on privileges and immunities between the relevant countries in which the partner organization may offer office space to the GCF, or the ability of such prospective country to provide privileges and immunities to the GCF as are necessary for the fulfilment of its purposes and to the officials of the GCF as are necessary for the independent exercise of their official functions in connection with the GCF, on a temporary basis;
   3. The availability of adequate local facilities necessary to support the operations of the GCF and the core group of staff, including in relation to financial services; housing options; local and international transport facilities, taking into consideration any existing travel restrictions; and state-of-the-art teleconference and videoconference facilities;
   4. The willingness of the prospective partner organization(s) or countries to consider shared financial and administrative arrangements;
   5. The prevalence and ability of the relevant countries to respond promptly and effectively to the COVID-19 virus; and
   6. The diplomatic representations and the presence of other international organizations in the relevant countries;
6. Also authorizes the Executive Director to activate the alternative working arrangements referred to in paragraph (e) above, in the event it becomes necessary, to mitigate the impact of the spread of the COVID-19 virus on the achievement of the Secretariat’s key performance indicators, it being understood that while the alternative working arrangements may need to be put in place until the twenty-seventh meeting of the Board, such arrangements will only be used on an “as needed” basis and activated for the minimum amount of time necessary;
7. Approves a contingency budget in an amount equal to 2 per cent of the administrative budget of the Secretariat to cover costs relating to the activation of alternative working arrangements until the originally scheduled dates for the twenty-seventh meeting of the Board;
8. Requests the Executive Director to consult with the Budget Committee on how such contingency budget should be allocated to specific line items;
9. Decides that although reallocation between line items in the contingency budget is permitted, no reallocation from the contingency budget to the administrative budgets of the Secretariat and the independent units is permitted;
10. Requests the Executive Director to ensure that there is a standing delegation of authority to a competent official who can implement or activate the measures referred to in paragraphs (e) and (f) above in a prompt manner in the event that the Executive Director is unavailable to take a decision on such matters and an urgent decision is required;
11. Also requests the Executive Director and the Co-Chairs to hold regular discussions, as appropriate, in relation to any measures implemented pursuant to this decision;
12. Confirms that if the Executive Director, or his delegee, proposes measures which fall outside of the authorities provided in this decision, such measures may not be implemented without the approval of the Board;
13. Reaffirms that the Headquarters of the GCF remain in Songdo, Incheon, Republic of Korea, in accordance with decision 6/CP.18 of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and in accordance with the Agreement between the Republic of Korea and the Green Climate Fund concerning the Headquarters of the Green Climate Fund; and
14. Decides to review the implementation of this decision on the originally scheduled dates for the twenty-seventh meeting of the Board (22 to 24 October 2020).

The Board:

1. Takes note of the “Final report of the review of the effectiveness of committees and group established by the Board”, the independent review of committees, panels and groups presented at the twenty-fourth meeting of the Board in document GCF/B.24/Inf.15/Add.01;
2. Notes its decision B.05/12, paragraphs (a) and (b), and document GCF/B.05/12 titled “General Guidelines for Committees and Panels”;
3. Requests the Co-Chairs to consult Board and alternate members, as well as the various committees, with a view to concluding the review of committees, panels and groups no later than the twenty-sixth meeting of the Board;
4. Invites Board and alternate members, as well as committees, to present views on the independent review no later than 10 April 2020 in order to inform the Co-Chairs’ consultations;
5. Requests the Co-Chairs, in accordance with decision B.05/12, paragraph (b), to present updated general guidelines for committees and panels for consideration at the twenty-sixth meeting of the Board; and
6. Reiterates decision B.23/03, paragraph (c), and urges the Co-Chairs to undertake pre-Board meeting consultations in an open, inclusive, consultative and transparent manner with regard to the documents referred to in paragraphs (c) and (e) above.

The Board, having considered document GCF/B.25/02/Rev.01 titled “Consideration of funding proposals”:

1. Takes note of the following funding proposals:
   1. Funding proposal 124 titled “Strengthening Climate Resilience of Subsistence Farmers and Agricultural Plantation Communities residing in the vulnerable river basins, watershed areas and downstream of the Knuckles Mountain Range Catchment of Sri Lanka”, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, as contained in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.01 and Add.10/Rev.01;
   2. Funding proposal 125 titled “Strengthening the resilience of smallholder agriculture to climate change-induced water insecurity in the Central Highlands and South-Central Coast regions of Vietnam”, by the United Nations Development Programme, as contained in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.02 and Add.10/Rev.01;
   3. Funding proposal 126 titled “Increased climate resilience of rural households and communities through the rehabilitation of production landscapes in selected localities of the Republic of Cuba (IRES)", by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as contained in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.03 and Add.10/Rev.01;
   4. Funding proposal 127 titled “Building Climate Resilience of Vulnerable Agricultural Livelihoods in Southern Zimbabwe", by the United Nations Development Programme, as contained in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.04 and Add.10/Rev.01;
   5. Funding proposal 128 titled “Arbaro Fund – Sustainable Forestry Fund”, by MUFG Bank, Ltd., as contained in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.07; and
   6. Simplified approval process (SAP) funding proposal 013 titled “Scaling Smart, Solar, Energy Access Microgrids in Haiti”, by Nordic Environment Finance Corporation, as contained in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.08;
2. Approves funding proposal 124 for the amount of USD 39,775,000, submitted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, subject to the conditions set out in annex II and in the respective term sheet set out in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.10/Rev.01;
3. Also approves funding proposal 125 for the amount of USD 30,205,367, submitted by the United Nations Development Programme, subject to the conditions set out in annex II and in the respective term sheet set out in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.10/Rev.01;
4. Further approves, pursuant to a vote in which 22 of the Board members present voted in favour and none of the Board members present voted against, and in respect of which none of the Board members present abstained from the vote, funding proposal 126 for the amount of USD 38,206,791, submitted by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, subject to the conditions set out in annex II and in the respective term sheet set out in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.10/Rev.01;
5. Approves funding proposal 127 for the amount of USD 26,574,567, submitted by the United Nations Development Programme, subject to the conditions set out in annex II and in the respective term sheet set out in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.10/Rev.01;
6. Also approves funding proposal 128 for the amount of USD 25,000,000, submitted by the MUFG Bank, Ltd., subject to the conditions set out in annex II and in the respective term sheet set out in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.07;
7. Further approves simplified approval process (SAP) funding proposal 013 for the amount of USD 9,900,000, submitted by the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation, subject to the conditions set out in annex II and in the respective term sheet set out in document GCF/B.25/02/Add.08;
8. Reaffirms that, pursuant to annex IV to decision B.17/09, the Executive Director or his designee is authorized to negotiate and enter into legal agreements on behalf of the GCF with accredited entities and other parties involved in respect of funding proposals approved by the Board, taking into account any condition approved by the Board in this decision and in the decision accrediting the relevant accredited entity; and
9. Authorizes the Secretariat to disburse fees for each funded project/programme approved by the Board as per the disbursement schedule to be agreed in the funded activity agreement in accordance with the policy on fees and the general principles and indicative list of eligible costs covered under GCF fees and project management costs adopted by the Board pursuant to decision B.19/09.

The Board, having considered document GCF/BM-2020/01 titled “Implementation matters relating to the GCF’s obligations under the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment”:

1. Reiterates the commitment of the GCF to the highest standards of integrity, including its zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and sexual harassment;
2. Decides that the provisions of the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment relating to third parties (including Counterparties and Victims that are not Covered Individuals, each as defined in the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment) are to be reviewed and revised and, pending the outcome of such review and revision, are inoperative;
3. Takes note that, subject to paragraph (b) above, the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment is in effect;
4. Requests the Secretariat to present to the Board, no later than its twenty-seventh meeting, the proposed revisions of the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment, in line with best practices among international financial institutions and the business model of the GCF;
5. Also requests the Secretariat to assess the cost implications of implementation of the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment and to submit to the Budget Committee a budget request for its consideration prior to its presentation to the Board at its twenty-seventh meeting; and
6. Further requests the Secretariat to present to the Board for its consideration, no earlier than the consideration of the proposed revisions to the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment described in paragraph (d) above, amendments to the relevant standards, safeguards and policies of the GCF, to address the requirements placed on accredited entities to integrate the obligations set out in the Policy on the Prevention and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, and Sexual Harassment.

The Board, having considered limited distribution document GCF/BM-2020/04 titled “Status of approved funding proposals: major change to FP027 (Universal Green Energy Access Programme)”:

1. Takes note of the no-objection letters submitted by Ethiopia and Uganda for FP027;
2. Approves the inclusion of Ethiopia and Uganda as host countries for FP027;
3. Also approves the waiver of the drawing condition set out in the approved term sheet for FP027, as described in document GCF/BM-2020/04; and
4. Authorizes the Secretariat to negotiate the funded activity agreement for FP027, which shall reflect the changes hereby approved, as contained in document GCF/BM-2020/04.

The Board, having considered document GCF/B.25/06 titled “Co-Chairs proposal: Guidance from the twenty-fifth session of the Conference of the Parties”:

1. Takes note of this report, including the actions to be undertaken by the Board and the Secretariat in 2020 in response to guidance received from the Parties during the twenty-fifth session of the Conference of the Parties, as contained in annex I; and
2. Confirms that, in accordance with paragraph 18(n) of the Governing Instrument for the Green Climate Fund, as well as decision B.13/11 on the relationship of the Green Climate Fund with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change thematic bodies, the engagement of the Board with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change constituted bodies is determined by the Board and in the context of the agreed Board workplan and priorities.

The Board, having considered document GCF/B.25/12 titled “Review of the simplified approval process pilot scheme”, and with reference to decision B.18/06, which mandated the review of the simplified approval process pilot scheme:

Requests the Secretariat to further develop the simplified approval process for Board consideration by the twenty-sixth meeting of the Board.

The Board, having considered document GCF/B.25/10 titled “Revision of the structure and operations of the independent Technical Advisory Panel”:

1. Takes note of the independent consultant’s report of the same title as presented in annex II of document GCF/B.25/10;
2. Decides to reappoint, as an exception to paragraph 12 of annex I to decision B.BM-2018/09, the following members of the independent Technical Advisory Panel for a 1.5-year term starting on the date of the expiration of their current term:
   1. Mr. Ahsan Ahmed;
   2. Ms. Claudia Martinez; and
   3. Mr. Joe Yamagata;
3. Also decides to amend the terms of reference of the independent Technical Advisory Panel to increase the size of the Panel from 6 members to 10 members by the end of 2020;
4. Requests the Secretariat to launch a call for experts immediately in order to identify suitable candidates to join the independent Technical Advisory Panel as members;
5. Also requests the Secretariat to recruit one administrative support consultant to report to and work directly with the Chair of independent Technical Advisory Panel, but shall be hosted by and located in the Secretariat for administrative purposes;
6. Further requests the Investment Committee to nominate additional experts as members of the independent Technical Advisory Panel by the twenty-sixth meeting of the Board, with due consideration given to the geographic and specialty coverage in accordance with the updated terms of reference of the independent Technical Advisory Panel;
7. Requests the Secretariat to improve the contracting modality for the roster of experts for use by the independent Technical Advisory Panel to ensure quick deployment and utilization;
8. Approves an additional administrative budget for the Board for the year 2020 in the amount of USD 338,800 to cover the additional four members of the independent Technical Advisory Panel, the administrative support consultant, and the operationalization of the roster of experts. This approval is in addition to the USD 3,673,720 approved via decision B.24/05, paragraph (f), thus bringing the total administrative budget for the Board for the year 2020 to USD 4,012,520; and
9. Requests the Secretariat, in consultation with the Investment Committee and the independent Technical Advisory Panel, to propose updates to the operational modalities of the independent Technical Advisory Panel to accommodate the increased workload by the twenty-sixth meeting of the Board.

The Board, having considered limited distribution document GCF/B.25/04 titled “Status of approved funding proposals: Extension of deadline in respect of FP104 (Nigeria Solar IPP Support Program)”:

1. Recalls decision B.24/10;
2. Notes with concern the delay in the implementation of FP104;
3. Decides to extend the deadline until 21 August 2020 for the submission by the accredited entity of a certificate or legal opinion, in form and substance satisfactory to the Secretariat, confirming that the accredited entity has obtained all final internal approvals needed by it and has the capacity and authority to implement the proposed project for the following approved funding proposal:
   1. FP104, titled “Nigeria Solar IPP Support Program”;
4. Recognizes that in light of the repeated requests to extend the deadline referred to in paragraph (c) above, the Board may be unwilling to grant any further extension beyond 21 August 2020; and
5. Requests the Secretariat to present to the Board at its twenty-sixth meeting a status update on the implementation progress of FP104 and, as appropriate, any lessons learned relating to projects whose deadlines have been extended by the Board.

The Board, having considered limited distribution document GCF/B.25/11 titled “Status of approved funding proposals: status of further no-objection letters and modality for adding future no-objection letters for FP038 (GEEREF NeXt)”:

1. Recalls that the Secretariat presented FP038 at the sixteenth meeting of the Board to be implemented in 30 host countries, including Uruguay;
2. Also recalls decision B.16/02, in which the Board approved FP038;
3. Confirms, accordingly, that the Board approved FP038 in decision B.16/02 for 30 host countries, including Uruguay;
4. Takes note of the five new no-objection letters for FP038 submitted by the national designated authorities for the relevant countries;
5. Approves the inclusion of Morocco, Panama, the Philippines, Saint Lucia and Samoa as host countries for FP038; and
6. Authorizes the Secretariat to negotiate the funded activity agreement for FP038, which shall reflect the change hereby approved, as contained in document GCF/B.25/11.

The Board, having considered document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01 titled “Consideration of accreditation proposals”:

1. Takes note of the explanation provided by the Secretariat and the Accreditation Panel contained within annex VI of document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01 regarding Applicant 90 (APL090) (the National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development Secretariat (NCDDS)), which was accredited by the Board pursuant to decision B.24/11;
2. Recalling decision B.24/11, paragraphs (a) and (b), decides that the accreditation of Applicant APL090 will apply to the National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development (NCDD) instead of NCDDS, subject to, and in accordance with, the assessments by the Accreditation Panel contained in the relevant annexes for Applicant APL090 in decision B.24/11 and the completion of Stage III of the accreditation process by having an effective accreditation master agreement, in accordance with decision B.23/11; and
3. Requests the Co-Chairs to transmit to the Board a draft decision containing the paragraphs below with an invitation to approve the decision on a non-objection basis within a period of fourteen (14) days:
   1. Takes note with appreciation of the assessments conducted by the Secretariat and the Accreditation Panel contained within the relevant annexes for the following applicants:
      1. Applicant 097 (APL097) is the Bhutan Trust Fund for Environmental Conservation (BTFEC) based in Bhutan, as contained in annex III to document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01; and
      2. Applicant 098 (APL098) is the Trade and Development Bank of Mongolia (TDB Mongolia)) based Mongolia, as contained in annex IV to document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01;
   2. Approves the accreditation of applicants APL097 and APL098, pursuant to paragraph 45 of the Governing Instrument for the GCF, subject to, and in accordance with, the assessments by the Accreditation Panel contained in the relevant annexes to document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01 for each of the applicants and the completion of Stage III of the accreditation by having an effective accreditation master agreement, in accordance with decision B.23/11;
   3. Takes note with appreciation of the assessment conducted by the Secretariat and the Accreditation Panel contained within the relevant annex of document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01 for the following applicant seeking to upgrade its accreditation type:
      1. Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF), as contained in annex V to document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01; and
   4. Agrees to upgrade the accreditation type of the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation as contained in decision B.10/06, paragraph (c), subject to, and in accordance with, the assessment by the Accreditation Panel contained in annex V to document GCF/B.25/13/Rev.01.