Adaptation made to measure: a guidebook to the design and results-based monitoring of climate change adaptation projects

Given that international climate financing requires clear adaptation-related results verification, this guidebook by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) proposes a method for results-based project design and monitoring. Intended for the use of GIZ personnel, representatives of governments, other bilateral donors and non-governmental organisations, this document seeks to answer to the following questions.

• What constitutes an adaptation project and what does not?
• Which specific factors must be accounted for when defining cause-effect correlations and indicators?
• How does this affect results-based monitoring?

The guide explains a five-step approach to designing an adaptation project, a results framework for it and setting up a results-based monitoring system.

1. Step one is about assessing the context for adaptation; outcomes include indentifying adaptation needs and setting adaptation priorities.
2. Step two is for determining the basic orientation of a project on the basis of the context for adaptation identified in the first step. The following three dimensions with specific relevance for adaptation projects are described: building adaptive capacity, measures for reducing identified risks/vulnerabilities (adaptation actions) and the successful achievement of development despite climate change.
3. Step three provides guidance for devising the strategic orientation, including setting the project up in conjunction with partners and identifying the underlying assumptions of the results framework.
4. Step four is about defining indicators and determining a pre-project context (baseline); outcomes include the selection of special methods for results measurement (as needed).
   
5. Step five is for operationalising the results-based monitoring system. By this step, monitoring has been operationalised and put into place. In this phase, suitable procedures are put in place to establish a close integration between project steering and the results-based monitoring system. The final outcome is the dissemination of knowledge beyond the project.

This practical guide is illustrated with specific examples of indicators and projects, particularly the Climate Change Adaptation in Rural Areas of India (CCA RAI), which illustrate the content and constitute a reference point in designing adaptation projects and their M&E systems. The project’s aim is to create political conditions for increasing the adaptive capacity of rural communities on multiple levels and to develop practical instruments for implementation.