UK announces £100m for vulnerable countries tackling climate change

• £100 million of UK funding will help climate-vulnerable populations adapt to climate change.
• At COP28 Summit today, the UK will call for bolder action to fight the impact climate change is having on health.
• Package that contributes towards the £1.6 billion of climate aid announced by the Prime Minister on Friday.

The UK Government will make commitments to help vulnerable countries strengthen their resilience to the increasingly frequent and severe effects of climate change at the COP28 Summit today (Sunday 3 December).

International Development and Africa Minister Andrew Mitchell will announce £100 million to support some of the most climate-vulnerable countries to tackle climate change. This will support an initiative to strengthen early warning systems in countries on the front line of climate change, giving people advanced warning of cyclones, flooding and other extreme weather so they can move away from danger, saving lives and protecting vulnerable communities.

The funding will also help make health care in these areas more resilient and able to withstand disasters, like floods, and ready to deal with spikes in infectious diseases, like cholera and malaria, due to floods caused by climate change.

Recognising the urgency of the situation, which forces 26 million into poverty every year, the Government will also join calls for bolder collective action to protect the lives, health and livelihoods of those most impacted by climate change.

This supports the Prime Minister announcing major funding for climate projects and stressing the need for ambitious, innovative and pragmatic action.

International Development and Africa Minister Andrew Mitchell, said: “The devastating effects of climate change hit the most vulnerable the hardest.

“These funding commitments will help countries and people be better prepared and protected against extreme weather events and natural disasters. They will help roll out measures such as early warning systems, and open up access to climate finance to build resilient health services.

“The UK will continue to press for a bold and ambitious approach to support those on the frontline of our changing climate, and to create a safer planet for us all.”

On behalf of the UK, Minister Mitchell will endorse the ‘Getting Ahead of Disasters’ Charter, the ‘COP28 Declaration on Relief, Recovery and Peace’, and the ‘COP28 Declaration on Climate and Health’.

Speaking at COP28, he will outline details of the funding package, which include:

• Nearly £20 million for a package of disaster risk financing and early warning systems. This will help the one-third of the world’s population who are not covered by early warning systems to prepare for climate shocks and extreme weather, reducing disaster-related mortality and damage. It will also provide affordable insurance against climate disasters, such as droughts.
• Funding of £36 million for climate action in the Middle East and North Africa to support long-term climate stability. This will mobilise $500 million for clean energy and green growth projects, support 450,000 people to adapt to climate change, and support 200,000 women in better protecting their families from climate shocks. This delivers on the UK’s commitment to scale up pre-arranged finance for crisis recovery.
• Over £4.4 million to improve access to climate finance for Small Island Developing States and enable them to adapt to the impacts of climate change, with support from the Global Environment Facility’s Special Climate Change Fund and the Alliance of Small Island States.
• Another £3 million for a new research hub in partnership with Canada, to help local communities address climate shocks and adapt to the long-term impacts of a changing climate. This will be delivered through the Climate Adaptation and Resilience (CLARE) programme, launched by the UK at COP26.
• Up to £18 million for an innovative new programme to adapt and strengthen health systems. This will help partner countries manage the growing health impacts of climate change, from infectious diseases and food shortages, to water insecurity and other health-related emergencies. It will be the first climate and health programme to be announced by a G7 country.
• A further £20 million for a new research programme to guide the UK’s future work on climate-resilient health systems, recognising the fast-evolving agenda and the need for a stronger evidence base of what works to address the growing threats from climate change to health.
• Finally, £3 million for a new partnership with the International Rescue Committee to reduce the impact of climate-related crises on schools, students and communities. The Climate Resilient Education Systems Trial will build an evidence base of effective approaches to combatting climate change in and through education.

At the COP28 Summit on Sunday (3 December), the UK will convene experts and thought leaders for a panel discussion on climate security.

It will be the first time that the UK has hosted such an event, with the US, the EU, Iraq, Kenya, Mali, NATO, and United Nations Development Programme expected to attend.

It aims to improve collective understanding of the security implications of climate change, including global instability and conflict, while exploring best practice to respond to these risks through data-informed policy making, stress testing, analytical foresight capability, and international cooperation.

AND SCOTLAND CHIPS IN TOO

£2 million for loss and damage in marginalised communities

First Minister Humza Yousaf has announced that C40 Cities will receive £1 million from Scotland’s Climate Justice Fund to focus efforts on tackling loss and damage in marginalised communities.

The Scottish Government, in partnership with direct-funding charity GiveDirectly, will also provide a further £1 million from the fund to support communities in Malawi to deal with the impacts of climate-induced loss and damage.

The First Minister was speaking at a COP28 panel discussion with delegates from Bangladesh, Sierra Leone and France, and a youth representative from Argentina, on Scotland’s contribution to addressing loss and damage.

C40 Cities is a global network of nearly 100 mayors committed to halving their fair share of emissions by 2030. The Scottish Government will work with C40 Cities through their Inclusive Climate Action programme to address urban loss and damage, support sub-Saharan Africa’s first local Just Transition process and address losses and damages faced by climate migrant communities.

The latest funding allocations fulfil the commitment to treble the Climate Justice Fund to £36 million over the course of this Parliament. 

First Minister Humza Yousaf said: “Our world-first Climate Justice Fund will continue to focus on communities most affected by climate change, and in order to deliver for those who need it most we must ensure the views and needs of those typically marginalised in such communities – particularly urban voices from the Global South and youth perspectives – are heard.

“This funding for the Inclusive Climate Action programme will support cities in the Global South to deliver local inclusive climate action, build resilience for residents, pilot city-led approaches to loss and damage and build cities’ influence in global policy debates.

“While of immense importance, we cannot just provide funding to deal with the effects of climate-induced loss and damage alone.

“Devolved governments have a crucial and essential role to play in addressing loss and damage and the global journey to net zero – responsibility for over half of the emissions cuts needed at a global level lie with devolved state and regional governments.

“The C40 Cities programme aligns with our Climate Justice principles, and will provide cities with support that builds resilience and can be scaled up to meet community need.”

Mayor of Freetown and C40 Co-Chair Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr said: “The climate crisis is a global issue which causes local pain and consequences across generations. Loss and damage is fundamentally an issue of climate justice, as those who have contributed the least to climate breakdown are the ones who most bear the brunt of its chaos.

“This is true between countries and regions, but also between generations and gender, as well as within our cities, where the most vulnerable are the most severely affected.

“I thank the Scottish Government for its leadership in climate justice and support to C40. This funding will support cities in the Global South to deliver for their residents through local inclusive climate action, building resilience and piloting innovative city-led approaches to loss and damage.”