Simon Stiell: Without protection from climate crisis, all countries pay high price

"National Adaptation Plans are more necessary than ever. They are truly vital. This year, we saw how every bit of preparation – every policy, every plan – is the difference between life and death for millions of people around the world," Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Simon Stiell said at the high-level event on National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) at COP29: Transforming the support ecosystem for NAPs: from vision to action at COP29 in Baku, Report informs.

"Prudence demands we plan for the worst. Many of you know that these plans are not easy to put together. Resources are scarce, both funding and capacity – especially for those most vulnerable, in Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States. People, communities, nations want to act, to protect themselves and their loved ones, to strengthen their businesses and economies – but they do not have the means. And when nations can't climate-proof their links in global supply chains, every nation in our interconnected global economy pays the price. And I mean literally pays the price, in the form of higher inflation, especially in food prices, as savage droughts, wildfires and floods rip through food production," he noted.

"We must flip this script. Business as usual won’t get us there. We need urgent action. We need transformation. Solutions, born out of the wealth of information and progress already made through existing adaptation efforts. We need data. Consultation. But we also need to build on the experience of communities around the world. Their lessons must serve as a strong foundation for comprehensive National Adaptation Plans. Of course, we cannot ignore the adaptation elephant in the room: there is a stark financial gap we must bridge. Adaptation costs are skyrocketing for everyone, especially developing countries. Their costs could rise to $340 billion per year by 2030, reaching as much as $565 billion per year by 2050," he added.

"It's easy to become slightly anesthetized by all these numbers, especially at this finance-focused COP. But let’s never allow ourselves to forget: these figures are the difference between safety and life-wrecking disasters for billions of people. The IPCCs Working Group Two report told us that almost half the human population lives in climate vulnerability hotspots, where people are 15 times more likely to die from climate impacts. Personally, I find that fact deeply disturbing, and practically offensive in some ways. It certainly keeps me up at night, and I'm guessing it also does so for many of you. I also want to talk about another aspect of flipping the script. Let's talk about the massive transformational power of adaptation, beyond its risk mitigation functions. It’s clear that adaptation investments – at the right scale and pace – can be truly transformative," he said.

"Not only protecting people and economies, but also driving forward much more opportunity, equality, and prosperity – minimizing losses and damages on lives and livelihoods. We can no longer rely on small streams of finance. We need torrents of funding. They need to be easier to access, especially for the most vulnerable countries that often face the biggest barriers. We must explore innovative financing mechanisms, and provide the technical assistance countries need to formulate their NAPs. Just a few months ago, at the NAP Expo, I launched the NAP 3.0 initiative. One of its main goals is precisely to promote innovative adaptation financing, tailored specifically to the needs of Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States. And the global financial system must evolve to meet these needs. I urge multilateral development banks to think beyond traditional grants and loans. Philanthropies, the private sector, and bilateral donors must step up with the urgency that this crisis demands, without increasing the debt burden of vulnerable countries," he noted.

"We must also work to minimize bureaucratic hurdles that so often stand in the way. The people who receive this investment will not disappoint. They want to adapt. Often, they know better than we do how to adapt. Because resilience is in humanity’s DNA. We need only the means. Every country can and must submit their National Adaptation Plan by 2025. This is not just a timeline – it is a lifeline. More than that – it's a fast track to the stronger economies and societies that all countries want. And that is in every nation's interest, in these turbulent times," he said.