Long-time Adaptation Fund specialist leaves legacy of knowledge

THE ADAPTATION Fund lost one of its key experts and ambassadors who helped build the fund through its formative years, when long-time staff member Daouda Ndiaye left at the end of February to take up a position as lead adaptation specialist at the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Ndiaye worked at the fund for over eight years, starting as an adaptation officer in November 2010, and, since July 2014, as a senior climate change specialist. He served as a key technical expert, supporting the growth of the portfolio, ensuring quality of projects, overseeing monitoring of results and helping the fund develop from its early years into the full-fledged fund it is today.

He helped represent the fund at key events, from the global, ministerial to the community levels, building relationships with beneficiaries, implementing partners, contributors and other key stakeholders, including from Jamaica, which was one of the first countries from the Caribbean to benefit from the fund.

A multilingual Senegalese national with a PhD from Pierre et Marie Curie University in Paris, Ndiaye had built a vast working knowledge and network of the fund and built strong links with governments, NGOs and regional organisations, particularly in African Francophonie countries with whom he established a long-term partnership with the Institut de la Francophonie pour le Developpement Durable at United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change meetings.

During his tenure with the fund, he was a mainstay supporting the Adaptation Fund Board’s Project and Programme Review Committee, participating in some 20 board meetings. He held key roles in the development of policy and project reports, and was known among his colleagues for his calm and accessible demeanour.

Prior to joining the fund, he brought several years of experience as a climate change specialist, portfolio manager, regional technical field adviser, and environmental researcher. His new position at IsDB will include building its adaptation portfolio.

Although he departed with“energy and excitement”, he said it was“a bittersweet moment”as he looked back on his years supporting the board, working with the secretariat and the fund’s extended community. He is “proud having been a part of this great adventure.”