Bangladesh among vulnerable nations needing urgent climate adaptation funds: Experts

Vulnerable countries like Bangladesh urgently need predictable and sufficient grant-based public financing for climate adaptation, experts have said.

They said this while addressing a multistakeholders dialogue on the Adaptation Gap Report 2023 at a Dhaka hotel on Monday, according to a statement on Tuesday.

While addressing the past three years’ shortfall (2020-2022), experts said that developed nations should fulfill their commitment to mobilise $100 billion annually through 2025.

They urged that wealthy countries and international partners prioritise and increase climate adaptation finance flow with fairness, as need-based, obligatory for most affected communities in Bangladesh.

Concern Worldwide, Action against Hunger, International Centre for Climate Change Development (ICCCAD) and YouthNet for Climate Justice jointly organised the dialogue ahead of the UN Climate Change COP28 conference.

The discussion started with Concern Worldwide’s Country Director Manish Kumar Agarwal, providing an overview of the mission that addresses extreme poverty and climate change projects in Bangladesh.

In her speech, Nayoka Martinez-Bäckström, first secretary at the Embassy of Sweden, emphasised the climate action efforts by the developed countries to deliver $100 billion per year as climate finance to developing countries.

Jyotiraj Patra, programme director at Concern Worldwide Bangladesh, focused on the stark realities outlined in the Adaptation Gap Report 2023.

Dr AKM Saiful Islam, from the Institute of Water and Flood Management (IWFM), BUET, said that developing climate resilience will require seven times the current spending to transform adaptation, at a rate of $8.5 billion per year, with $6.0 billion per year expected from external sources or international climate funds and development partners.

Climate finance expert Dr Mizan R Khan said, "Currently, approximately 70 per cent of climate finance directed towards Least Developed Countries (LDCs) is in the form of loans rather than grants, dissuading private sector interest due to their public grant nature.

“Surprisingly, around 53 per cent of these funds prioritise mitigation in Official Development Assistance (ODA), sidelining adaptation efforts. The skewed allocation resulted in a mere 7-8 per cent of climate finance reaching adaptation projects.

“Relying solely on public finance remains inadequate due to its reliance on political commitments, necessitating innovative financial mechanisms beyond traditional funding.”

During the question-and-answer session, participants actively addressed queries related to adaptation strategies, financial requirements, and actionable steps for effective collaboration.

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