$250M GCF Boost Powers ADB's 'Glaciers to Farms' Resilience Push in Asia

In a landmark step toward building climate resilience across some of the world's most vulnerable mountainous regions, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) has approved $250 million in concessional funding for "Glaciers to Farms", a flagship adaptation program spearheaded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). This bold, decade-long initiative aims to safeguard water, food, and livelihoods for 13 million people across nine countries in Central Asia, the South Caucasus, and Pakistan.

The program's ambitious scope and financing structure mark a transformative pivot from fragmented climate adaptation efforts to a coordinated, science-driven strategy to address accelerating glacier melt, increasing climate extremes, and growing water insecurity.

A Massive $3.5 Billion Adaptation Investment

GCF's $250 million, approved at its 43rd Board Meeting on 29 October, will be mostly disbursed as grants and combined with $3.25 billion in investments from ADB and partners. The projects will be implemented in phases over the next ten years, forming a region-wide resilience architecture for both agricultural and water systems.

These investments aim to:

• Upgrade and expand climate-resilient irrigation infrastructure

• Strengthen water storage capacity and watershed management

• Deploy early warning systems for floods and droughts

• Support adaptive social protection and health services

• Build capacity in local financial institutions to serve agri-businesses, particularly women-led enterprises

According to Yasmin Siddiqi, ADB Director for Agriculture, Food, Nature, and Rural Development:

"Rapid glacial retreat is one of the most complex development challenges faced by our region. With catalytic support from GCF, Glaciers to Farms will help move the region beyond fragmented projects and towards systemic, long-term resilience that protects lives and livelihoods now and for future generations."

Targeting Four Glacier-Fed River Basins

The program zeroes in on four high-risk, glacier-dependent river basins:

• Naryn River Basin (Kyrgyz Republic, Central Asia)

• Pyanj River Basin (Tajikistan and Afghanistan region, Central Asia)

• Kura River Basin (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia — South Caucasus)

• Swat River Basin (Pakistan)

These basins span 27 million hectares and are home to critical agriculture, hydropower, and water supply systems. Climate-induced glacial retreat in these areas is intensifying the frequency of floods, droughts, and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs)—threatening communities that depend on stable river flows.

A Lifeline for 13 Million Vulnerable People

The program is designed to directly benefit about 13 million people, primarily smallholder farmers and mountain communities who face mounting risks from water scarcity, heatwaves, and ecosystem disruptions. In countries where one in four jobs is in agriculture, climate shocks could have devastating economic and social consequences.

To mitigate this, Glaciers to Farms will:

• Integrate climate and glacier assessments into national development plans

• Support monitoring systems and climate data infrastructure

• Provide early warning tools to prevent or reduce loss from climate hazards

• Fund resilient cropping systems and water-efficient technologies

• Expand climate-resilient health and social safety nets

Building Regional Capacity and Financing Readiness

A critical aspect of the program is regional cooperation and financing readiness. Through technical support, Glaciers to Farms will help participating countries:

• Improve cross-border climate adaptation planning

• Share hydrological and climate risk data

• Access future climate finance through enhanced project pipelines

• Strengthen the bankability of resilience investments

The nine participating countries are:

• Armenia

• Azerbaijan

• Georgia

• Kazakhstan

• Kyrgyz Republic

• Pakistan

• Tajikistan

• Turkmenistan

• Uzbekistan

These countries share a reliance on glacier and snow-fed river systems for agriculture, domestic water, and power generation—services now under threat from glacial retreat and climate volatility.

A Transformative Regional Collaboration

According to Thomas Eriksson, GCF Director for Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East Region:

"Glaciers to Farms sets a transformative benchmark by improving data, coordination, and financing readiness for long-term resilience in the region's water and food systems. It is the kind of large-scale, innovative, and collaborative effort that will help countries strengthen adaptation planning."

The program is a testament to the power of science-informed, regionally aligned adaptation investments that not only respond to climate risks, but lay the foundation for sustainable development in the face of environmental uncertainty.

Science at the Core

The groundwork for the program was laid in 2024, when GCF-funded glacier risk assessments helped form the technical basis for Glaciers to Farms. These assessments modeled glacier behavior, hydrological risks, and socio-economic vulnerabilities, providing a data-driven framework for prioritizing investments.

As the world's largest climate fund, GCF's support adds critical concessional capital to catalyze future resilience projects under the program umbrella, enabling countries to access further climate adaptation finance from both multilateral and private sources.

Glaciers to Farms represents a bold paradigm shift in how climate adaptation is approached in fragile, high-altitude regions. By focusing on systemic resilience—across agriculture, water, health, and finance—the program not only responds to the looming threat of glacial melt, but also provides a blueprint for regional adaptation cooperation in an era of climate instability.