As COP30 continues in Belém with a renewed call to put “people at the centre” of climate action, a coalition of fragile and conflict-affected countries says more than one billion of the world’s most vulnerable citizens are still being excluded from meaningful climate support.
In a statement, the Improved and Equitable Access to Climate Finance Network said countries grappling with conflict, displacement and weak governance are being locked out of the financing they need to adapt to intensifying climate impacts. The Network, formed in 2024, includes 10 countries such as Somalia, Burundi, Mauritania and Papua New Guinea, with three new members joining this week.
Conflict-Affected Countries Receive Only 10 Percent of Climate Funds
Although they are among the hardest hit by droughts, floods, food insecurity and resource conflict, fragile states received only 10 percent of global climate finance in 2022. Many face overwhelming administrative hurdles, from lengthy approval processes to demanding application requirements.
At a UNFCCC side event, Yemen’s Minister of Water and Environment, Tawfiq Al-Sharjabi, said limited technical capacity and rigid procedures continue to block access to urgently needed funding. Somalia’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Bashir Mohamed Jama, highlighted the scale of the shortfall: Somalia receives just over US$300 million in climate-related funding annually, less than one percent of its adaptation needs, yet receives US$1.1 billion in humanitarian aid.
“This is a damning failure at the heart of the global development system,” Jama said. “It is easier to unlock finance after a disaster than to invest in preventing one.”
Finance Negotiations at COP30 Add Urgency
The plea comes as COP30 negotiators engage in tense talks over increasing global climate finance flows, including efforts to mobilize an additional US$1.3 trillion. Experts say ambition must be matched with fairness.
“We need equal ambition in ensuring that existing funds reach the people who need it most,” said Mauricio Vazquez of ODI Global.
The Network is urging climate funds and development banks to reform how they allocate resources so that fragile states are no longer sidelined. They also want greater investment in long-term adaptation and resilience instead of reactive, post-disaster support.
When Climate Pressure Fuels Instability
Experts warn that climate change is deepening existing fragilities across some of the world’s poorest regions. Asif R. Khan of the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs noted that most UN peace operations are deployed in climate-stressed areas where extreme weather is driving conflict.
In West Africa, dwindling water resources have intensified clashes between herders and farming communities. Khan said meaningful resilience requires more than environmental interventions and must include peacebuilding, inclusive governance and financing that reflects real conditions on the ground.
Growing Support for a More Inclusive Climate Finance System
Several donor countries are pushing for more equitable access to climate finance. Ireland’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Neale Richmond, said Ireland’s international development strategy is grounded in reaching those “furthest behind first,” noting that climate, peace and development must be tackled together.
With Mauritania, Papua New Guinea and South Sudan joining the network on Tuesday, the coalition’s voice is growing stronger inside the COP30 negotiations. Members insist that climate justice cannot be delivered if the world’s most fragile countries and the more than one billion people who live in them remain excluded from decisions and financing intended to protect them.
As COP30 heads toward its final days on November 21, the message from fragile states is clear: global climate action must reach the people facing the gravest risks, not only those best equipped to navigate complex funding systems.
