US$661.9 million will go to 'Loss and Damage Fund' - UN Assistant Secretary-General

As part of efforts to mitigate the negative effects of climate change in poor and low-income countries, some Member States of the United Nations have pledged US$661.9 million to the Loss and Damage Fund.

The governing instrument of the Loss and Damage Fund was adopted by governments during the COP 28 in 2023 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The Fund is intended to support poor and low-income countries that are negatively affected by climate-induced disasters including floods, drought, wildfires, hurricanes and storms.

Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, the UN Assistant Secretary-General and Director-General of African Resilience Capacity Secretariat on Climate Change in Africa, addressing the media in Accra, on the sidelines of the 6th AU Mid-Year Coordination Meeting, said the Fund would be operationalised this year to support vulnerable nations.

Some 165 million people in Africa suffered climate-induced disasters such as floods, wildfires, and drought in 2023.

Mr. Diong observed that although Africa contributed less than four per cent of the global carbon emissions, however, African countries were the worst affected by the negative effects of greenhouse gas emissions.

He said the UN was mobilising more funds from governments around the world to support vulnerable countries suffering from climate-induced disasters.

He indicated that Africa would make a strong case for more funds to be released to the ‘Loss and Damage Fund’ in the next G20 meeting in the United States in September, this year.

Mr. Diong said the climate change issue was featured prominently on the annual discussion agenda of the UN as Africa suffers dire climate challenges.

That, he said, had culminated in the establishment of the African Humanitarian Agency Secretariat headquartered in Kampala, Uganda, to address the worrying situation on the continent.

Mr. Diong called on African nations to comply with the Nationally Determined Contributions to help minimise the negative effects of climate change.

He also charged African States to desist from practices considered inimical to the environment.

Mr. Diong lamented the astronomical rate of deforestation, land degradation and illegal mining, and the wrongful farming practices that contributed negatively to climate change.