Adaptation Gap Report 2024: Come hell And High Water
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released the Adaptation Gap Report 2024: Come hell and high water.
- The report stresses the need for significant increases in climate adaptation efforts, particularly regarding adaptation financing for developing nations.
Key Findings of the Adaptation Gap Report 2024:
- The adaptation finance gap, indicating the disparity between financing needs and actual funds, has widened.
Current funding (2022) is significantly below requirements, with only USD28 billion provided—meeting just 5% of the projected needs under the Glasgow Climate Pact. - Glasgow Climate Pact aims to reduce methane emissions by at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030.
- UNEP estimates developing countries need USD 387 billion annually by 2030 for adaptation.
- Only about one-third of the adaptation finance gap is in sectors typically funded by the private sector, leaving significant opportunities for private investment.
- The Emissions Gap Report, 2024 indicates that global temperatures could increase by 2.6°C to 3.1°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.
- Developing countries suffer the most from climate-induced weather events despite having minimal contributions to global greenhouse gas emissions.
- Recent floods in Nepal, Nigeria, and Chad underscore the financial and infrastructural vulnerabilities of these nations.
- While 171 countries have at least one adaptation policy, out of 26 countries without an adaptation policy, 10 are uninterested in developing one, indicating slow progress in NAP planning and implementation.
- The UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience (UAE-FGCR), introduced at UNFCCC COP28, sets dimensional and thematic targets (e.g., agriculture, water, health) for adaptation, yet implementation is lagging.
- It is the first international declaration of its kind with climate adaptation as the primary focus.
- UNEP calls for a shift from reactive to strategic adaptation, addressing harder-to-finance areas like ecosystem preservation and cultural heritage.
- The concept of “transformational adaptation” was contentious during COP28 but is considered crucial for addressing the rising risks.
- Transformational Adaptation refers to actions that adapt to climate change by making substantial changes in structure or function, surpassing mere adjustments to current practices.
