Loss and Damage Fund Board Set To Meet In PH In December

The Board of the Loss and Damage Fund, the body mandated to lead the management of funds to assist climate-vulnerable developing countries, will reconvene for its fourth meeting this December in the Philippines, Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga has announced.

Yulo-Loyzaga said that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is currently finalizing the host country agreement with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). I Photo: Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Facebook

Yulo-Loyzaga said that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is currently finalizing the host country agreement with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which will formalize the Philippines’ hosting of the Fund’s board meeting.

The Board has 26 members from parties to the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement, with 12 members from developed countries and 14 from developing countries. The Philippines sits in the Asia-Pacific Group of the Board.

The DENR chief disclosed that among the topics to be prioritized during the board meeting is the identification of additional funding sources beyond those from member countries.

“Right now, the funding of the Board still is at around less than USD 700 million. Most of that will actually be used in setting up the operations of the Fund,” Yulo-Loyzaga noted.

Developed countries have previously pledged about USD 700 million to the Loss and Damage Fund. According to the DENR chief, small-island nations in the Pacific are expected to be prioritized once the Board starts operationalizing the Fund.

“They are exposed, they are vulnerable, their cultures are also being threatened because their cultures really revolve around their seafaring life and civilization. So, it’s existential for them on many levels—economic, environmental, and cultural. So, these are the ones that will probably be the first ones in line to be considered,” she said.

The Loss and Damage Fund Board held its second and third meetings in South Korea in July.