The United Nations said on Thursday that international funding for climate resilience in developing countries has declined in 2021 despite rapidly increasing impacts, as Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that action is “stalling” despite the growing need to protect people. Has been.
Many developing economies are least culpable for the greenhouse gases driving global warming, with those hardest hit by the costly and devastating effects of worsening climate and rising seas.
But in its latest annual assessment of financing climate preparedness, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) found that public finance for developing countries fell 15 percent to about US$21 billion in 2021 – the most recent year for which figures are available.
Meanwhile, UNEP said the total annual financing need for developing countries to adapt to climate impacts is projected to rise to US$387 billion this decade.
“Hurricanes, fires, floods, droughts and extreme temperatures are becoming more extreme, and they are about to get worse,” Guterres said in a statement. He said the need to protect people and nature is “more pressing”. “Yet, as needs grow, action is stalling,” he said.