Supporting innovative catalytic financing tools through SOFF

As climate change accelerates, the world is witnessing an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events—heatwaves, floods, storms. This is why, early warning systems are a necessity. When timely and reliable, they provide communities and governments critical lead time to prepare, respond and mitigate the impacts of climate-related shocks.

This is why we need ground-breaking initiatives to support early warning systems. The Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF) is an initiative led by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) that helps countries close weather and climate data gaps. In the long-term, SOFF aims to strengthen the resilience in the most vulnerable regions by enabling better forecasts and more effective early warning systems.

NDF has financed SOFF with USD 16 million since 2022. Now, we announce an additional support for this ground-breaking initiative, with a booster grant of EUR 150,000 to design and launch the SOFF Impact Bond.

Mobilising and frontloading climate finance for early warnings

The SOFF Impact Bond aims to raise up to USD 200 million in its first issuance and will accelerate SOFF’s work by front-loading grant financing to establish and expand essential observation networks.

Bond investors will be repaid by donors, who will disburse funds when the network of weather and climate observations operations are in alignment with the standards of the World Meteorological Organization.

As an innovative finance mechanism, the bond aims to expand SOFF’s funding pool through contributions from public agencies, private investors and philanthropic foundations.

During the 11th Steering Committee meeting in Dublin in May, we announced an additional contribution to SOFF in the form of a Booster Grant, which will support the design and launch of the bond. The official announcement of the SOFF Impact Bond is expected to take place in COP30 in Bélem, aiming to deliver on the COP29 climate finance goal as an innovative financing vehicle.

“This Booster Grant marks an important step in taking SOFF to the next level. The Impact Bond aims to unlock a new wave of results-based financing for long-term, sustainable investments in weather and climate data infrastructure. It reflects the essence of NDF’s work, providing early-stage catalytic support to innovative solutions that mobilise climate finance,” says our Program Manager, Jacob Lorentzen, who represented NDF in the SOFF Steering Committee.

During the 11th SOFF Steering Committee, NDF announced financing for the SOFF Impact Bond. Photo: SOFF