National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) are country-driven frameworks for medium- and long-term adaptation planning, aiming to integrate adaptation into the national policy environment across all relevant sectors and levels. Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the NAP process is explicitly oriented towards reducing vulnerability to climate change impacts by strengthening adaptive capacity and resilience, providing a nationally driven framework to translate the identified adaptation needs into concrete strategies and programmes.

NAPs can provide an estimate of the costs of adaptation; help to mobilize and guide investment into adaptation; and enable countries to access climate funding for their formulation and implementation. Developing countries face an escalating challenge in financing climate adaptation, with estimates projecting an annual need of USD 310–365 billion by 2035. While a diverse ecosystem of support mechanisms is available to respond to these needs, the existing financial flows are critically insufficient and inadequate to meet the evolving adaptation needs and priorities of developing countries. In 2023, international public adaptation finance to developing countries amounted to only USD 26 billion, a figure dwarfed by the scale of documented needs. This financing gap persists, despite the continued efforts of developing countries as evidenced by the growing alignment of NAPs with national development plans.

This briefing note by SLYCAN Trust provides an overview of the current support architecture for NAP formulation and implementation. It examines key sources of finance and technical assistance within the UNFCCC and across the broader international landscape of support for guiding adaptation planning in developing countries.