The fund\u2019s board has agreed a plan for the start-up phase of the UN mechanism to help developing nations tackle the consequences of climate disasters.<\/p>\n
The Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) will spend $250 million until the end of 2026 on an initial set of interventions to help developing countries deal with the aftermath of climate-driven disasters.<\/p>\n
At a three-day meeting in Barbados, the UN fund\u2019s board agreed on the strategy for the start-up phase of the mechanism, which will initially focus on strengthening national responses to climate catastrophes rather than community-level action \u2013 something activists had called for.<\/p>\n
The fund will give grants of between $5 million and $20 million to project proposals submitted by developing countries<\/a>, with the first round of approvals expected at the next board meeting. Governments will also be able to obtain direct budget support for emergency measures, such as temporary housing for displaced people<\/a>, in case of a disaster.<\/p>\n The start-up phase will be formally called the \u201cBarbados Implementation<\/a> Modalities\u201d (BIM) in a nod to the host of the meeting. BIM is a colloquial nickname used by Barbadians to refer to their country.<\/p>\n In one of the most hotly debated issues, board members<\/a> decided that small island developing states (SIDS) and the world\u2019s least developed countries (LDCs) would receive at least 50% of the fund\u2019s resources during the start-up period.<\/p>\n During discussions, developed countries strongly pushed for that option, setting a minimum floor, while most developing nations<\/a> wanted a less binding target that the fund would only be \u201caiming to achieve\u201d.<\/p>\n After gavelling the final decision, Richard Sherman, co-chair of the fund\u2019s board, said it had been a \u201ccomplicated\u201d meeting with lots of disagreements, but the final agreement showed that \u201ccollective, multilateral action was still a possibility\u201d.<\/p>\n Among the most contentious issues was the role of other multilateral funds, such as the Green Climate Fund, in delivering the projects and the provision of financial instruments apart from grants<\/a>, such as a blend of public and private finance.<\/p>\n On the first point, the board decided the start-up phase may be implemented in collaboration with other entities and tasked the FRLD\u2019s Secretariat with devising a proposal. On the second issue, the fund will only disburse grants<\/a> but recipient countries can voluntarily decide to combine them with other instruments.<\/p>\n Harjeet Singh, founding director of the India-based Satat Sampada climate<\/a> Foundation, welcomed the board\u2019s decision as a \u201clong-overdue step in supporting countries devastated by climate impact\u201d.<\/p>\n But he added that \u201cfrontline communities must not just receive support, they must have direct access to resources and decision-making over rebuilding their lives\u201d.<\/p>\n The money at the fund\u2019s disposal is dwarfed by the escalating costs of dealing with the consequences of climate impacts<\/a>.<\/p>\n Despite pledging $768 million to the fund,\u00a0governments have so far signed contribution agreements<\/a>\u00a0for $495 million and only paid in $321 million. The Loss and Damage Collaboration, a network of NGOs working on the issue,\u00a0has estimated<\/a>\u00a0that developing countries\u2019 loss and damage needs add up to about $400 billion a year.<\/p>\n The FRLD\u2019s executive director<\/a>, Senegalese banker Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, said the Secretariat would deliver a plan to attract further resources by the end of 2025.<\/p>\n Addressing board members during the meeting, Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley said it would be necessary to \u201cthink outside of what is normal\u201d to scale up funding.<\/p>\n She spotlighted taxes on flights, shipping and oil and gas extraction as a way to raise money for climate action<\/a>. Barbados is a co-chair of the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force \u2013 together with France and Kenya \u2013 which is expected to offer concrete proposals by COP30 this November.<\/p>\nMost vulnerable states will get half of funding<\/h2>\n
Searching for billions<\/h2>\n
Mottley sends stark warning to fossil fuel CEOs<\/h2>\n