Tag Archives: climate

COP30: Development Banks pledge innovative climate financing for adaptation

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At the opening of the 30th United Nations Climate Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, multilateral development banks (MDBs) reaffirmed their commitment to scaling up climate finance, pledging new and innovative funding mechanisms to strengthen global adaptation and resilience efforts.

Speaking at a side event hosted by the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) on Monday, MDB leaders emphasized that “financing climate resilience is not a cost, but an investment.” The session, titled “Accelerating Large-Scale Climate Change Adaptation,” featured representatives from major institutions including the African Development Bank (AfDB), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), and European Investment Bank (EIB).

MDBs scale up climate resilience funding

Ilan Goldfajn, President of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, announced that MDBs plan to triple resilience financing to reach $42 billion by 2030, underscoring that “resilience is essential for development today.”

Tanja Faller of the Council of Europe Development Bank noted that climate change “amplifies existing inequalities,” warning that vulnerable communities are often the hardest hit and slowest to recover.

Read Also: COP 30: African stakeholders issue seven-point call  

Representatives from the Islamic Development Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the New Development Bank also shared examples of successful adaptation investments and resource mobilization strategies.

African Development Bank leads regional action

Kevin Kariuki, AfDB Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate, and Green Growth, highlighted the Bank’s leadership through the Climate Action Window—a dedicated financing mechanism under the African Development Fund for low-income countries.

“The African Development Bank is the only multilateral development bank with a portfolio of adaptation projects ready for investment through the Climate Action Window,” Kariuki said, adding that Germany, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland are key partners.

He also cited the Bank’s YouthADAPT programme, which has invested $5.4 million in 41 youth-led green enterprises across 20 African countries, creating over 10,000 jobs, 61% of them led by women.

Global leaders call for urgent action

The session followed COP30’s official opening, where Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva made a passionate call for greater global investment in climate action to avert “a tragedy for humanity.” He urged countries to honor their Paris Agreement commitments and accelerate the transition from fossil fuels and deforestation.

Outgoing COP President Mukhtar Babayev, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Ecology, reminded delegates of the need to fulfill promises made at the Baku Conference, including mobilizing $300 billion in climate finance. He handed over the COP presidency to André Corrêa do Lago, Brazil’s lead diplomat for climate negotiations.

COP30, running from 10–21 November, is expected to focus on accelerating climate adaptation, strengthening international partnerships, and mobilizing financing to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Thousands of climate-displaced Somalis abandoned by authorities, Amnesty Int’l claims

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Somali authorities and the international community have repeatedly failed to protect thousands of people displaced by climate-related drought in southern Somalia, leaving them vulnerable to violations of their rights to food, water, health, and life, according to a new Amnesty International report.

Titled “No rain, no food, no animals: The human rights impact of drought and displacement in Somalia”, the report details how, between 2020 and 2023, climate-induced drought, coupled with ongoing conflict and marginalization, forced thousands of Somalis to relocate first to internal displacement camps in southern Somalia and later to Dadaab Refugee Camp in Kenya. During these journeys, authorities provided little to no relief, including food or healthcare.

“Somalia is on the frontline of human-induced climate change,” said Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. “Its contribution to global warming is negligible, yet its people bear the brunt of the crisis. High-income countries most responsible for climate change must step up to support Somalia in adapting to these effects.”

The report, based on interviews with 177 refugees at Dadaab between September 2024 and March 2025, as well as humanitarian workers and government officials, highlights the dire conditions faced by displaced families. Persistent drought has dried up water sources, causing people to rely on contaminated water, resulting in outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera. Food prices have surged by up to 160% above pre-2020 levels, fueling malnutrition and further displacement.

Read Also: How climate change ignites wildfires

Somalia declared the drought a national disaster in November 2021, yet health budgets remain under 5% of government spending, far below the 15% target set by the Abuja Declaration, leaving millions without access to essential services.

Stories from affected families illustrate the human cost. Fadumo, a 53-year-old mother of eight from Baydhabo, abandoned her farm and walked 24 hours for dirty water before relocating to Dadaab after failing to find work in Mogadishu. Bile, a 33-year-old father of eight from Jilib, lost his elderly parents after he had to move with his family due to drought-induced food scarcity.

Displacement often occurred multiple times. IDPs initially settled in southern Somalia faced further movement due to continued drought or floods. Journeys to Dadaab could last two days to six weeks, with many forced to sell belongings or livestock to afford transport. Humanitarian aid was largely absent along travel routes, with limited assistance concentrated only at camps, leaving many families malnourished and exhausted upon arrival.

“Somali authorities must urgently implement climate resilience policies that protect vulnerable communities from the compounding effects of drought, conflict, and displacement,” Chagutah said.

The report calls for a coordinated international response to ensure that climate-displaced communities in Somalia receive the protection, resources, and rights guaranteed under the Somali constitution and international law, including the Kampala Convention.

Experts advocate ‘people-first’ strategy to tackle climate, poverty, biodiversity crises

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A group of international experts led by Project Drawdown has called for a “people-first” approach to addressing global challenges such as poverty, biodiversity loss, and climate change — urging policymakers to prioritize human well-being as the foundation for lasting environmental and climate action.

In a commentary published in the journal One Earth, the team argues that existing resources can effectively ease human suffering and protect the planet if solutions focus first on meeting people’s needs.

“Poverty, biodiversity loss, and climate change are interwoven problems with interwoven solutions,” said Dr. Paul C. West, Project Drawdown’s Senior Scientist and lead author of the study. “To solve all three, we need to prioritize actions that meet people’s needs first, especially in rural areas of low-income countries where poverty and hunger are widespread. If that doesn’t happen, benefits for nature and climate are likely short-lived — and it’s just the right thing to do.”

The paper, titled “A People-First Approach to Achieving Global Climate and Nature Goals,” was co-authored by 14 experts from organizations across Bangladesh, Canada, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, Senegal, Singapore, and the United States.

The authors noted that current global strategies tend to focus on climate and biodiversity goals while treating human well-being as secondary — a key reason why progress on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has stalled. With over one million species facing extinction and climate impacts worsening, they argue, a paradigm shift is urgently needed.

Read Also: How climate change ignites wildfires

Their proposed “people-first approach” emphasizes identifying technologies and practices that benefit people, biodiversity, and climate simultaneously — but with priority given to actions that improve lives immediately.

Practical examples include:

Village-scale solar projects, which enhance quality of life while cutting emissions and reducing deforestation.

Supporting communities that protect intact ecosystems, thereby preserving biodiversity and carbon storage.

Safeguarding coastal mangroves, which protect livelihoods and food sources while offering climate and habitat benefits.

The experts also highlight the importance of targeting interventions where they can have the greatest impact. “Understanding where needs are highest and where solutions can be most effective can identify ‘hot spots’ or ‘leverage points’ to guide action and accelerate progress,” the commentary stated.

“By designing projects to meet people’s needs and prioritizing those at the nexus of human, climate, and nature goals, decision-makers and funders can deliver enduring results that don’t jeopardize human well-being — and therefore, their own success,” the authors concluded.