The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) confirmed on Wednesday that funding allocated to help communities adapt to climate change remains far below actual needs, despite global warming trending to exceed the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold above pre-industrial revolution levels.
The Programme noted in a new report published on the UN News Centre that developing countries will need approximately $305 billion annually by 2035 to build resilience and mitigate risks associated with climate change, pointing out that tripling international public funding would cover only a maximum of 29 percent of these needs.
Slowdown in Funding Growth
In the same context, the report revealed that global efforts suffer from a funding shortage, with the volume of international public financial flows directed toward adaptation reaching between $28.2 billion and $31.7 billion in 2024, an increase of only $1 billion over the previous year.
The report stressed that this growth has stagnated; moreover, the estimated $305 billion does not include private sector needs, meaning the figure could effectively double, while climate-related losses and damages continue to worsen.
Intensifying Efforts to Triple Support
It added that there is an agreement to call for tripling annual adaptation support threefold during the climate conference held last year in Brazil, which is part of a key outcome document, but the expected funding, ranging between $85 billion and $120 billion annually, would cover only 20 to 29 percent of estimated needs after accounting for inflation rates.
It highlighted the necessity of strengthening institutions and accelerating implementation to protect the most vulnerable communities, while Fiji had called on developed countries on October 5 last year to provide the necessary funding to achieve a just transition to renewable energy.
A UN report issued last August showed that developing countries need between $310 billion and $365 billion annually to finance climate change adaptation, compared to only $26 billion in funding allocated for this purpose in 2023.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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