Source: UN News: Saturday, 01 November 2025 00:01 AM
At a time when the world is grappling with rising global temperatures and deepening climate impacts, developing countries do not have sufficient financial resources to protect themselves from extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, storms, etc. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) has warned that under these circumstances the risks to lives, livelihoods and economies are deepening. UN Environment Program (UN Environment Programme)UNEP) has Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty It has released its report just before the annual UN Climate Conference (COP30) to be held in the city of Belém, Brazil. According to the study, adaptation plans to protect against climate impacts have been better than before, but there is still a shortage of funds. Many adaptation measures can be adopted to deal with extreme weather disasters. For example, high, strong walls on sea coasts, early warning systems for storms, floating dwellings on water and crops tolerant to drought. Tweet URL
But, at present developing countries lack funds for such schemes. An estimated $310 billion per year will be needed for adaptation efforts in developing countries by 2035. This figure is 12 times the amount currently available for public adaptation at the international level.UN Secretary General António Guterres, in his message for this report, noted that adaptation is not a cost, it is a lifeline. “By closing the adaptation gap, we can save lives, deliver climate justice, and build a safer, more sustainable world. Let us not waste another moment.” Investing in Adaptation Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme, said every person on Earth is facing the impacts of climate change: forest fires, heat waves, desertification, floods, rising costs and other impacts. Expressed concern that action on greenhouse gas reductions is lagging behind, and these impacts will get worse. Therefore, it is important to increase funding for adaptation, from both the public and private sectors. And in this process, weak countries facing sensitive situations will have to be saved from the burden of debt. In the year 2023, an amount of 26 billion dollars was available for developing countries, whereas in 2022 this figure was 28 billion dollars. This means that at least $284 billion is needed to bridge the gap between need and reality. If this deficit trend is not reversed soon, it will not be possible to achieve the target of doubling adaptation financing by 2025. Important Findings According to the report, 172 countries have at least one national adaptation policy, strategy or plan. Only 4 countries have not begun to prepare a plan. However, 36 countries’ measures are either out of date or have not been changed in the past decade, and therefore require revision. As part of the Paris Climate Agreement process, countries have reported more than 1,600 adaptation efforts, across areas such as biodiversity, agriculture, water and infrastructure. However, fewer countries are reporting actual results and impacts. This is important to understand the impact of any adaptation plan. © World Bank/Andrea Borgarello On drought-stricken land in Niger, a woman carries her child in her lap, carrying water. From Baku to Belém These new data from the UN agency will help debate the climate crisis during the UN’s annual conference in November. This year, the COP30 summit is being held in Belém, Brazil, where increasing financial resources for developing countries is a key topic of the climate agenda. In 2024, a new target was presented at the UN conference in Baku, Azerbaijan – from Baku to Belém Roadmap. To arrange funds of up to 1,300 billion dollars from the public and private sector by the year 2035. This amount is not only for adaptation efforts, but also for moving towards renewable energy by ending dependence on fossil fuels. Experts preparing the adaptation report believe that this amount will have to be given under grants rather than loans, otherwise it will be more difficult for weak countries to invest in adaptation.
