Background

As countries move into the implementation phase of their third generation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), strengthening the institutional systems needed to mobilize, coordinate and deploy climate finance has become increasingly important.

While many countries have adopted ambitious climate commitments, implementation often remains constrained by fragmented institutional arrangements, limited coordination between climate and finance institutions, weak investment pipeline development, and insufficient integration of climate priorities into national planning and budgeting processes.

The first Global Stocktake highlighted the need to accelerate implementation and strengthen support for developing countries to translate climate commitments into action. More recently, Decision 1/CMA.7 (Global Mutirão) encouraged Parties to develop implementation and investment plans for their NDCs and align them with broader development strategies.

In response to these challenges, the Government of Uganda, through its Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, established a Climate Finance Unit (CFU) to strengthen national coordination and enhance the mobilization, management and tracking of climate finance from domestic and international sources. The Unit plays a key role in integrating climate finance into fiscal and development planning processes while supporting the mobilization of climate investments.

To facilitate knowledge exchange and peer learning, the UN Climate Change Regional Collaboration Centre for East and Southern Africa (RCC EASA) is hosting a Peer Masterclass focused on Uganda's experience in strengthening institutional readiness, climate finance governance and financial planning systems.

Objectives

The Peer Masterclass aim was to showcase Uganda’s Climate Finance Unit as a practical institutional model for strengthening climate finance governance and readiness to accelerate NDC implementation.

The session:

• Showcased Uganda’s Climate Finance Unit model and operational experience.
• Strengthened understanding of approaches to enhance institutional readiness for climate finance.
• Shared lessons learned on climate finance mobilization and NDC finance planning.
• Promoted peer learning and South-South cooperation among countries working to strengthen climate finance systems.

Target audience

The target audience for the event was:

• Government institutions responsible for climate change, finance, planning and investment.
• Development partners supporting NDC implementation and climate finance.
• Climate practitioners, including NDC focal points.
• Climate finance specialists.
• Project preparation experts.
• Investment planning professionals.

Key Insights

The session convened 69 participants, including government representatives, development partners, and climate finance practitioners to exchange practical insights on strengthening institutional readiness for NDC implementation, drawing on Uganda’s experience with its Climate Finance Unit. The event was also supported by UNCDF and the Uganda Climate Finance Unit.

Uganda’s Climate Finance Unit has developed various tools to support climate finance governance including the National Climate Finance Strategy, Climate Budget Tagging Framework, Green Taxonomy, Climate Finance Vehicle, and Green Bond Framework, supporting a structured approach to climate finance mobilisation.

Key Lessons Learned

• Institutional arrangements are the foundation of climate finance mobilisation;
• Climate finance should be approached as an investment and public finance agenda;
• Understanding climate finance mechanisms is essential to align projects with funding opportunities;
• Dedicated mechanisms are needed to strengthen coordination and private sector engagement;
• Practical, practitioner-led exchanges significantly accelerate implementation.