​Climate justice funding risks being too little, too late - Foysol Choudhury

Foysol Choudhury MSP

The world’s least affluent nations tend to be most vulnerable and have less to spend on disaster recovery and climate adaptation. Meanwhile, Scotland and other wealthy nations are disproportionately responsible for the over-consumption and carbon emissions impacting our climate, yet will feel the effects far less. It’s clear that the causes and effects of climate change are not equally distributed.

At the Cross-Party Group on Bangladesh, which I chair at the Scottish Parliament, the Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK & Ireland highlighted the devastating impacts of the climate crisis on Bangladesh and the urgent need for greater international cooperation. Bangladesh is just one example of the many climate vulnerable countries around the world who are being increasingly affected by disastrous floods, cyclones and rising sea levels. Yet, countries like Bangladesh are not the biggest emitters fueling the climate crisis.

The inequality in the responsibility, burden and ability to adapt to climate change are symptoms of global climate injustice and the international community has only recently begun to take action.

Floods in low-lying Bangladesh are getting worse as sea levels rise because of global warming (Picture: Mamun Hossain/AFP via Getty Images)

Scotland was the first high-income country to pledge funding for climate loss and damage with our £2 million commitment at Glasgow’s COP26. This financing aims to address the consequences of climate change, which might include repairing infrastructure after a cyclone or supporting farmers after their lands are ruined by sea level rise.

Scotland’s pledge spurred conversations about loss and damage funding on the international stage.

COP27 saw the landmark decision to establish an international loss and damage fund, but it wasn’t until COP28 – just last year – that the fund finally began to materialise. Governments have committed hundreds of millions of dollars, but the fund is still struggling to find its feet.

In addition to loss and damage funding, financing for mitigation and adaptation is urgently needed to support poorer countries in preventing the harms of climate change before they occur. This includes emissions reduction initiatives, creating green economy jobs, and building resilient infrastructure.

While COP28 saw billions of dollars pledged to a patchwork of international climate adaptation and mitigation funds, these commitments fall far short of the real need, and their delivery needs to be accelerated dramatically.

The baby steps taken at successive COP meetings are not enough to protect populations at risk or to meet the need of those experiencing the harms of climate change right now. True climate justice requires more than mere commitments – it requires real, tangible and transparent funding to reach the places where it is needed most.

We cannot ignore our responsibility in the climate crisis. It’s up to the world’s wealthiest countries to pay for the damage they’ve caused and make good on their funding promises.

As a Scottish-Bangladeshi, I’m proud of Scotland’s global leadership on climate justice, but I know that more leadership is urgently needed to advance the goals of climate justice. The world is watching and we’re running out of time.

Research by intern Hannah Williams