The Australian government has promised A$150 million in climate finance for Pacific nations but has stopped short of contributing to a newly established global loss and damage fund.
This decision unfolded during the initial day of the Cop28 climate summit in Dubai, where nearly 200 countries agreed to create the fund to aid the most impoverished and vulnerable nations in coping with irreversible climate disaster impacts.
While the Albanese government expressed support for the fund’s formation, it opted not to offer financial backing. Instead, they declared a $100 million commitment to the Pacific Resilience Facility, aimed at investing in smaller-scale climate and disaster resilience projects.
Additionally, $50 million was earmarked for the Green Climate Fund, the world’s largest mechanism for climate financing. Although these commitments were announced at the Pacific Islands Forum in the Cook Islands the previous month, the exact monetary sums were not disclosed.
Australia’s support for the Green Climate Fund marks its reengagement with the UN body after the Morrison government’s withdrawal in 2018.
The current commitment by the Albanese government towards the fund is notably smaller than the $200 million contribution pledged by then former Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop in 2014 when the fund was established.
In a statement, the government highlighted its direct climate finance delivery to the Pacific region, aiming to address the impact of the climate crisis on people, housing, and infrastructure. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong urged other donor countries to emulate Australia’s lead in committing substantial funding towards the $500 million target for the Pacific Resilience Facility.
Richie Merzian, International Director with the Smart Energy Council and former Australian climate diplomat, said Australia’s focus on climate funding primarily targets the Pacific.
The creation of the loss and damage fund represented a hard-fought victory for developing nations after years of advocacy, yet current pledges fall short of experts’ deemed necessary levels. Wealthy countries have combined pledges of about US$700 million, a mere fraction of the annual economic and non-economic losses, estimated between US$100 billion to US$580 billion, faced by developing countries due to global warming.
