By Faridat Salifu
As the impacts of climate change intensify, so do the costs associated with responding to its challenges. Ahead of the global climate summit set to commence in Azerbaijan , governments, climate experts, and financial institutions are focusing on how to address the pressing need for increased climate finance.
The summit is expected to set a bold new global climate finance target, following the urgent calls for greater commitments in funding by vulnerable nations hit hardest by climate crises.
Zinta Zommers, the Climate Science and Practice Lead at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), has described the upcoming summit as pivotal. “This year’s COP is the climate finance COP,” Zommers stated.
She emphasized that, back in 2009, developed countries agreed to mobilize $100 billion annually to help vulnerable nations combat the impacts of climate change. However, with greenhouse gas emissions continuing to rise and climate-related damages intensifying, Zommers argues that this sum is now grossly inadequate.
“We’re seeing firsthand the catastrophic impact of climate change,” Zommers said, citing recent floods in West and Central Africa.
Over seven million people across 16 countries have been affected by unprecedented rains and flooding. In the regions around the Niger and Lake Chad basins, scientists report that climate change has made seasonal downpours between 5 and 20 percent worse, compounding a humanitarian crisis.
Countries such as Sudan, Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, and Chad have been particularly hard-hit, resulting in widespread displacement, loss of crops, and damage to infrastructure.
The UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund allocated over $38 million to help address the immediate needs of those affected in Africa, but Zommers acknowledged this amount barely scratches the surface.
Experts are now estimating that global climate finance requirements may exceed $4 trillion annually to effectively support worldwide mitigation, adaptation, and emergency response efforts. “Without this level of funding, many vulnerable regions will face escalating crises that jeopardize their economies, infrastructures, and, most critically, human lives,” Zommers noted.
The Azerbaijan summit will grapple with one of the thorniest issues in climate finance: how to fairly distribute the financial burden among nations.
Developing countries, which have contributed the least to global greenhouse gas emissions, argue that wealthier nations should assume a larger share of the cost.
This longstanding debate over “common but differentiated responsibilities” underscores the urgent need for clear financial commitments from high-emission countries, who are being asked to step up and support those on the front lines of climate impact.
Critics argue that developed nations have not kept pace with their initial funding promises. Although they pledged $100 billion annually over a decade ago, they have repeatedly fallen short of this target.
In recent years, climate-related losses and damages have grown exponentially, exposing the inadequacy of the original commitment. Developing nations now insist that without increased contributions from high-income countries, they will struggle to implement the policies and infrastructure needed to protect their populations and adapt to climate challenges.
The anticipated discussions in Azerbaijan will likely focus on securing a fair, sustainable financial framework to meet the increasing needs.
These may include mechanisms for scaling up investment in renewable energy, climate-resilient agriculture, disaster-resilient infrastructure, and more effective early warning systems for natural disasters. In many low- and middle-income countries, investments in these areas remain out of reach without substantial international support.
Yet, even with such urgent needs, there remains no consensus on how the new funding goal will be reached or what exact contributions each country should provide.
Experts are concerned that without clear commitments from high-emission countries, efforts to curb global warming and protect the most vulnerable communities will falter.
A critical component of the Azerbaijan summit will be to bring greater transparency to climate finance pledges and ensure that commitments are met with actionable timelines.
As Zommers noted, the stakes are extraordinarily high. Climate-related catastrophes continue to destabilize vulnerable regions, triggering migration, economic disruption, and widespread humanitarian challenges. For these regions, the promise of increased climate finance is not just about meeting environmental goals; it is about survival, stability, and resilience in the face of a rapidly changing world.
As global leaders converge in Azerbaijan, there is hope that this summit will mark a turning point in climate finance. Whether the commitments made will meet the needs of the vulnerable, however, remains to be seen. As Zommers concluded, “Our collective response will define the trajectory of climate resilience for future generations, and time is running out.”