Climate Change Adaptation Funds: Only 6pc goes to locally-led initiatives

Bangladesh is one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, and requires  huge funds to adapt. It is widely acknowledged that the funds should come from developed countries, who are among the highest polluters. The government has done well in allocating funds, and planning and adaptation. But is this enough? What more is required? Brac and other NGOs are at the forefront of climate change adaptation efforts. BRAC Executive Director Asif Saleh, who attended the recently held COP27 in Egypt, shared his views with The Daily Star's Porimol Palma.

The Daily Star (DS): COP27 has agreed to create a "Loss and Damage Fund". How will it help countries like Bangladesh?

Asif Saleh (AS): In concept, it is a major step forward that Bangladesh has been demanding for over 30 years. Through it, the world's most developed countries have acknowledged that the most impacted countries like Bangladesh should be compensated for the resulting loss and damage. However, the agreement does not yet specify the size of the fund, any donors or recipients. This coming year will be crucial for adding the details needed to make the fund more than just words.

The developed countries have blatantly failed in delivering the annual $100 billion promised in 2009 to support vulnerable nations for adaptation. There was no notable progress. How can another fund for "Loss and Damage" be effective?

There is a long history of failure by the most developed countries to live up to their commitments when it comes to addressing the climate crisis. But the countries most affected cannot afford to let that history serve as an excuse to not push for their rights. There's an important distinction to be recognised, as negotiations progress -- between climate adaptation and loss and damage. Bangladesh and other heavily affected countries need funding for both. To make both effective, we need to keep the pressure on more developed countries and focus on locally-led approaches. We also need to prioritise financing mechanisms, which will actually get the funding to the people who need it the most on the ground.

DS: Mitigation got little importance in COP27. Why?

AS: Mitigation is crucial. It must be pursued aggressively along with adaptation and loss and damage. Six hundred and thirty-six fossil fuel lobbyists were registered to attend COP27. That's more than the combined representation of the 10 [most vulnerable] nations, including Bangladesh. It's also an increase of over 25 percent from COP26. The UN must correct that problem before COP28 convenes in Dubai in November 2023. We all need to raise our voices to draw attention to what the lack of progress on mitigation looks like on the ground.

DS: How is Bangladesh doing in terms of adaptation?

AS: Adaptation has been happening in Bangladesh for decades now. We have had no alternative but to be innovative. It is no small feat that Bangladesh, despite being a country greatly affected by climate change, has the sixth fastest growing economy in the world. Bangladesh is at the forefront of both the conversation about adaptation and approaches to it.

The government has developed a National Adaptation Plan identifying 90 high-priority and 23 moderate-priority interventions. The 113 interventions have an estimated cost of $230 billion over the next 27 years. A significant challenge is funding -- the plan requires $8.5 billion a year, but current funding has reached only $1.2 billion a year. The situation is mirrored in the non-government sector, where development funding is also rapidly declining.

In the meantime, there is still a lot happening, and a lot of collaboration. As an example, the government has been investing in constructing cyclone shelters for many years. A new partnership, between the government, UN Environment Programme and BRAC will see those shelters complemented by the construction of climate-resilient houses. In another example, climate-resilient, migrant-friendly secondary towns are being piloted through a partnership with the government, ICCCAD, SPARC and Brac.

DS: Bangladesh has its own climate fund. Are we really making proper use of it?

AS: The government showed significant leadership in becoming the first developing country to establish a dedicated national climate fund to implement the Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan in 2009. Our national climate-related budget comprised 0.73 percent of the country's GDP in 2021-2022 and 4 percent of the annual budget. The fund has an 80:20 budgetary allocation, with 80 percent for government agencies and 20 percent for non-government organisations. A more even funding split is needed to unlock the potential of the non-government sector.

DS: How are Brac and other NGOs performing in addressing climate crisis?

AS: BRAC and other nongovernmental organisations are at the forefront of climate adaptation out of necessity. We have the approaches ready. For $350, we can provide safe drinking water to a household for 20 years through a rainwater harvesting system. It costs just $126,000 to run a climate adaptation clinic that supports 3,500 farmers for one year with climate adaptive agricultural inputs, techniques and services to adjust to changing conditions. The challenge is to scale these approaches.

For that, we need three things: first, we need to ensure easily accessible financing for scalable adaptation solutions, prioritise the approach to adaptation that should be funded, and the approach to adaptation must be locally led. Too often, strategies are created by international entities with little local input. The funds never get to the entities on the ground that are in greatest need, and the effort either fails or -- worse still -- leads to maladaptation. Only 6 percent of existing adaptation funds are going to locally led adaptation.

Finally, we need to identify financing mechanisms that will support local organisations, and will be quick and easy to deploy without creating undue risk for donors. This is where the role of strong intermediary organisations -- international or national -- can be useful.