On 12 an 13 March 2012, representatives from Mozambique, Niger and Zambia will be in Livingstone, Zambia, to attend the fifth meeting of pilot countries and regions participating in the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR), a program of the Climate Investment Funds (CIF). As implementing agent of the CIF, the African Development Bank (AfDB) will also attend.

"These annual meetings enhance PPCR's impact because countries from around the world can learn from one another on ways to integrate climate change into their national institutional planning and budgeting systems and processes," stated AFDB's CIF coordinator, Mafalda Duarte.

Effective institutional coordination, stakeholder engagement and knowledge management are key pillars to the PPCR programmatic approach. Countries will discuss the challenges this represents with Zambia offering lessons learned from developing mechanisms to coordinate its PPCR strategic program and Niger discussing barriers and opportunities to meaningful stakeholder engagement, including the private sector, as it moves forward into implementation.

Countries will also exchange views on the design and application of systems to monitor results and manage knowledge. Zambia will present again on the main issues it faced when developing the M&E section of its PPCR strategic program with particular emphasis on the institutional challenges and coordination with existing M&E efforts.

In addition, a segment on climate information systems and hydro-meteorological services has been organized in recognition of the large proportion of PPCR pilot countries that plan to make investments in this area.

The meetings will wrap up with a visit organized by the government of Zambia to the communities of Kasaya/Namapande in Kazungula District and Kasaya in Sesheke District to showcase the impacts of climate variability and change, indigenous adaptation strategies and transformational change experiences, including possible participatory adaptation interventions that can be employed.