Rationale for the CIPMF

Capacity building and institutional strengthening are central to the CIPMF, as many countries face challenges related to limited technical expertise and governance structures when implementing their NDCs, NAPs, and LT-LEDS. By focusing on building institutional capacity, the CIPMF helps ensure that countries can independently manage, implement, and monitor their climate strategies, fostering long-term sustainability and effectiveness. Countries are encouraged to use the CIPMF to identify and prioritize support needs to be communicated to the NDC Partnership and the GCF’s Readiness and Preparatory Support Programme to leverage technical and financial support to implement the CIPMF’s recommendations.

The CIPMF is designed to accommodate countries at different stages of progress, allowing them to engage at the appropriate entry point while complementing existing efforts without requiring a linear approach. By identifying gaps that hinder access to climate finance, it can help expedite and scale progress, ensuring that earlier (“upstream”) stage activities—such as enabling environments, investment prioritization, and financial strategy development—are properly undertaken to reduce bottlenecks and optimize finance mobilization at later (“downstream”) stages. By helping countries to access climate finance resources immediately, the CIPMF also supports medium-term climate investment planning and mobilization strategy. The proposed approach is committed to inclusivity and equity, ensuring that climate actions are socially just and sustainable. Recognizing climate change disproportionately impacts vulnerable communities, the CIPMF emphasizes the needs and voices of marginalized groups, including women, Indigenous peoples, and other disadvantaged communities. Prioritizing inclusivity, the CIPMF guides investments that address climate risks, reduce social inequalities, and enhance resilience among the most vulnerable populations, aligning with the broader sustainable development goals to ensure climate actions benefit everyone.

As the CIPMF aims to support the transition from planning to implementation, early engagement with the private sector is crucial. The private sector is a vital partner in the climate finance landscape, with its financial resources, technical expertise, innovative solutions, and implementation capabilities. Engaging private-sector actors can help develop investment opportunities, identify barriers, and unlock capital by ensuring targeted support. Additionally, aligning private-sector strategies with national climate and investment plans can enhance synergies, drive greater impact, and strengthen the implementation of climate commitments.

To ensure a holistic approach to mobilizing resources and scaling up investments across real economy sectors and market-driven transactions, the CIPMF applies to all climate finance sources: public finance from national governments and international donors; private finance from corporations and financial institutions; and blended finance, which strategically combines public and private resources to optimize funding and de-risk investments. By promoting active collaboration between public and private entities at every stage of investment planning and mobilization, the CIPMF seeks to unlock private capital at scale, drive the development of innovative financial instruments, and foster public-private partnerships essential for achieving the ambitious goals outlined in NDCs, NAPs, and national strategies.

Feedback loops enable ongoing learning and improvement, thus ensuring the effectiveness and adaptability of climate strategies. The CIPMF encourages countries to assess the outcomes of implemented actions, particularly when updating NDCs, NAPs, and LT-LEDS. By integrating these feedback loops, countries can align their climate investment strategies with evolving national priorities and global climate goals on an ongoing basis, making their efforts impactful and responsive to changing circumstances.