Borje urges closing adaptation finance gaps

Recognizing that finance and investments are crucial for implementing transformative climate actions, the Philippines called for the immediate delivery of climate finance commitments and underscored the need to close adaptation finance gaps, including through exploring innovative sources, to support developing nations’ adaptation measures.

The importance of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) for developing nations most at-risk to and affected by climate change was emphasized at the NAP Expo 2024. A high-level transformational dialogue was held to unlock diverse sources of adaptation finance.

Climate Change Commission (CCC) Secretary Robert E.A. Borje joined the dialogue, together with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Executive Secretary Simon Stiell, and Bangladesh Minister for Environment, Forestry and Climate Change Saber Hossain Chowdhury.

Borje underscored the importance of holistic approach to close adaptation finance gaps, ensuring that support for developing countries’ NAP formulation and implementation is available and easily accessible.

“To close the gaps, address our growing needs, and enhance adaptation action and support, we must work collectively to determine and unlock various sources, including the UNFCCC financial mechanism, and finance options with highest concessionality, least to no conditionalities, and no additional debt burden for developing nations,” Borje said.

The UN Environment Program’s Adaptation Gap Report 2023 estimated that support for adaptation falls short by up to $366 billion per year. Public finance flows for climate change adaptation from developed to developing countries have declined by 15 percent from 2021 figures, signaling the need to explore other sources for timely implementation of adaptation measures.

“We need to go beyond the doubling of adaptation finance by 2025, and delivering on the overdue commitment of $100 billion for developing countries’ climate actions,” Borje emphasized. “We need to be more creative and innovative to enable our timely implementation of action plans — so that we avoid further loss and damage, while building our adaptive capacities.”

Guided by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the Philippines forges partnerships with various countries, partners and stakeholders to augment domestic resources, enabling implementation of climate actions in speed and scale.

In addition to the UNFCCC financial mechanism including the Green Climate Fund, Borje highlighted other innovative sources of support applicable to the Philippines, such as bilateral partnerships, private sector investments, foreign-assisted support from development partners and stakeholders, and mechanisms such as thematic bonds.

From formulation to implementation, Borje underscored the importance of climate finance throughout the iterative process of NAPs.

“NAPs should then be considered as investment plans. With sufficient finance and transparent and predictable support flows, developing nations can translate plans into concrete actions with results,” Borje added.

Discussions on closing adaptation finance gaps and determining the new collective quantified goal on climate finance are expected to progress at the 29th Session of the Conference of Parties (COP29).

Hosted by the UNFCCC through the Least Developed Countries Expert Group, in collaboration with the Adaptation Committee and other constituted bodies, the NAP Expo 2024 was held from 22 to 25 April 2024 in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Outcomes of the NAP Expo 2024 will be further discussed in the upcoming Climate Change Conference in June 2024 in Bonn, Germany, and COP29 in November 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan.