Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 29) — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Wednesday called for the early mobilization of financial aid to help vulnerable developing countries mitigate the impact of climate change.
DENR Secretary Toni Yulo-Loyzaga said that discussions on the loss and damage fund is included in the agenda of the 28th UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 28) that starts this week in Dubai, and which President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will attend.
“The intensity of these tropical cyclones have actually crossed multiple regions, some as many as 11 regions whenever they hit us,” said Loyzaga in a briefing at the Malacañang. “So the cost of really trying to recoup and recover from this is way beyond what we are able to afford as a country.”
“It is extremely important that this becomes operationalized soonest, and that we are able to access it at a timely and locally-driven fashion,” she added.
At the East Asia Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia in September, Marcos called for the urgent realization of the fund, saying the burden of climate change is “disproportionately” greatest in countries with the lowest carbon footprints.
The DENR said the Philippines contributes “only less than .5 of 1%” of the global carbon emissions, with the energy and transportation sectors as top sources.
But the department admitted that it does not have enough financial capability to address climate change impacts.
“When we started to do the calculations for the emissions reduction budget based on our nationally determined contributions and we started to do the National Adaptation Plan, unfortunately, for us, this figure is in the trillions,\” Loyzaga said.
\”We are not alone,\” she added. \”Many of the small countries as well are also needing a great deal of assistance both for adaptation and mitigation.\”
During the UN Climate Conference (COP 27) in Egypt in 2022, countries reached a historic decision to establish a loss and damage fund, particularly for nations most vulnerable to the climate crisis.
A draft agreement will be up for approval at the Dubai climate talks.
Adapting to the climate crisis could cost developing countries anywhere from $160-$340 billion annually by 2030, but the number could rise to $565 billion by 2050 if climate change accelerates, according to a 2022 report by the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP)
