Lessons Learned and Recommendations from Ten Years of FCPF’s Capacity Building Program for Indigenous Peoples, Local Communities and Civil Society Organizations

After more than 10 years in operation, the FCPF’s Capacity Building Program for Indigenous Peoples, Local Communities, and Civil Society Organizations continues to support engagement of most disadvantaged and marginalized communities in REDD+ processes. This unique and long-standing program of direct financing has now reached over 70,000 people in all 47 FCPF countries, through diverse activities that raise awareness for engagement of these communities in national and international REDD+ discourse and decision making.

The FCPF contracted with Conservation International to conduct a learning review of the FCPF’s Capacity Building Program to ensure that good practices are replicated in future programming, and that less successful elements are improved upon. The review praises the breadth and reach of the program, and the availability of direct access to funding for community organizations. It also highlights the feature of self-selection by Indigenous Peoples and local communities as crucial for the legitimacy of the program.

The report also reveals that the program’s available resources simply cannot meet the existing demand for capacity building. The review calls on the program to target support to countries further advanced in the REDD+ process. And an additional recommendation is for the program focus more on the deep engagement of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in national and regional-level REDD+ decision-making processes, building on the program’s earlier efforts to generate general awareness and involvement of these stakeholders. 

Key outcomes from the review are now available online. The FCPF will incorporate these findings throughout the remainder of the program, and will use the results to inform the design of similar future programs and activities.