A new package of support from the UK, Germany and US aims to scale up protection for vulnerable communities against the impacts of climate change.
Source: Leon Neal/PA Media
Agreed at the recent G7 summit, the package includes £120 million in new funding from the UK and €125 million from Germany, with the intention of improving response times for vulnerable people when extreme weather and climate-linked disasters hit.
Pre-arranged financing for vulnerable communities will help build the systems needed to reach the poorest people quickly, such as payments when harvest fail, the countries said.
The UK and Germany will also use this money to invest in the regional disaster protection schemes across Africa, South East Asia, the Caribbean and Pacific, including contributions to the InsuResilience Global Partnership’s Vision 2025 and the Risk Informed Early Action Partnership (REAP).
In addition, the US confirmed it will join the UK, Germany and other G7 countries as a member of the InsuResilience Global Partnership and REAP.
The US Agency for International Development (USAID) also confirmed that it will announce additional contributions at the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), which is due to be hosted in Glasgow, Scotland this November.
“Tackling climate change is one of the greatest threats of our time as without action, it could push more than 100 million people below the poverty line as soon as 2030,” said UK Foreign and Development Secretary Dominic Raab.
“This joint UK, US and German action will enable quicker responses to extreme weather and climate-linked disasters in countries bearing the brunt of climate change.”
German Development Minister Gerd Müller, also commented: “Climate change is a reality – and we must not lose sight of this fact even in these times of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is important that the UK G7 Presidency has made climate action a focus of the summit. As those most responsible for causing climate change, we must assume responsibility for its consequences.”
“Droughts in Africa, floods in Asia – for the poorest, these climate disasters often mean the loss of their livelihoods. But less than 5% of the damage in these countries is covered by insurance. Through our new commitments, we are taking an important step towards insuring, by 2025, 500 million people in developing countries against damage caused by climate change. This means that emergency programmes can provide quick and targeted assistance to those affected when a disaster strikes.”
Ambassador Samantha Power, Administrator of USAID, further stated: “Investments that help communities adapt and build resilience to climate change is not just the right thing to do, but the smart thing. Every dollar we invest in adaptation and resilience saves us $3 in humanitarian assistance when crisis strikes.”
Nigel Clarke, DPhil, MP, Jamaica’s Minister of Finance and the Public Service, added: “It is increasingly evident that disaster risk financing is central to fiscal and debt sustainability. The Government of Jamaica therefore welcomes the new commitments by the G7 towards disaster risk financing; this will help build resilience to climate change and its fiscal impact. Jamaica is implementing a multi-layered strategy of risk transfer instruments. This ex-ante fiscal planning reduces Jamaica’s sovereign risk premium, and will provide fiscal resources to help finance the emergency costs associated with natural disasters and other climatic shocks.”
The new package of action was announced following the G7 Leaders Summit in Carbis Bay, Cornwall, UK.
It builds on commitments agreed by G7 countries last month to support efforts to respond to the risk of famine and other humanitarian disasters, as well as the rising threat of loss and damage and to make people safer from disasters through early warning, better preparedness and early action.
