The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has released a report focused on addressing the needs of conflict-affected, climate-vulnerable communities through targeted climate finance.
The report outlines that sixteen countries are caught in the intersection of climate vulnerability and armed conflict, representing 44 per cent of people impacted by natural disasters and 79 per cent of those in humanitarian need.
According to the report, 90 per cent of climate financing currently targets middle-income, high-emission-producing countries, while conflict-affected communities receive a fraction of the needed funds, which it said leaves them unable to adapt to climate impacts.
Further, conflict-affected communities receive only one-third of the adaptation funding compared to non-conflict settings.
An estimated 75 per cent annual gap exists between the adaptation support provided and the adaptation support needed.
Moreover, women, girls, and marginalised groups within these communities face even greater risks and have less access to resources.
Only 14 per cent of adaptation actions target women, and just 2 per cent of budgeted activities address gender equality.
It notes that the UNFCCC’s New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance is a “significant” opportunity to correct this injustice and makes a number of recommendations.
This includes:
- Formally recognising adaptation finance gaps by setting a target of 18 per cent of adaptation finance to go to climate-vulnerable, conflict-affected communities based on current estimates of costed needs.
- Balance sub-target, allocating finance equally between mitigation and adaptation, with a separate sub-goal for loss and damage.
- Ensuring that Loss & Damage funds are available in conflict-affected countries through a flexible range of partnerships, including civil society and local actors.
- Set a target for 88 per cent of climate bilateral finance to be gender-sensitive, with at least 15 per cent gender-responsive funding.
- Regular, transparent reporting, implementing mechanisms for transparent reporting on climate finance flows, ensuring accountability.
Read the full report here.