The United Nations' climate loss-and-damage fund has moved to provide US$20 million in aid sought by flood-stricken Nepal — yaani US$2 crore — the first time it has set aside money for any country, in what board members called a key test of the body's credibility, AFP reported from an extraordinary board meeting on Thursday.
Source: AFP via The News
Nepal will receive the $20 million from the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) after the devastating flood along its border with China's Tibet region in August, Nepal's government said late on Thursday, Reuters reported from Kathmandu.
Source: Reuters
The August 26 flood killed about 1,500 people and more than 5,000 are still missing, according to official data cited by Reuters. It affected about 60,000 people from 15,000 families and caused losses estimated at about US$2.7 billion — yaani about US$270 crore — to infrastructure including roads, bridges, schools and 13 hydropower plants. AFP, citing the fund board, said the floods were triggered by a climate-induced ice and rock avalanche and killed more than 1,400 people.
The board's Dominican co-chair, Camila Minerva Rodriguez Tavarez, called the outcome "truly historic" and thanked members for "allowing us to act promptly and have a response to Nepal", AFP reported. Nepal's finance minister Swarnim Wagle told AFP: "The fact that they could convene this emergency meeting in response to our letter and commit $20 million of grant money is very welcome." Nepal had sought the assistance in a letter to the FRLD in August, less than a week after the flood, Reuters said.
Money earmarked, not yet paid
The decision does not mean Nepal receives the funding immediately. The $20 million is the maximum a country can request in a single application, and Nepal must first present a proposal for the board's approval, with no firm timeline, AFP reported. The support was to "help address the severe damage caused by climate-related disaster", Nepal's Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Environment said in a statement cited by Reuters. Early official estimates show reconstruction bills could top US$4.7 billion, so the UN aid is less than 1% of what Nepal needs.
Prime Minister Balendra Shah, in his maiden speech to the United Nations in September, said Nepal's disaster served as a warning to the world and blamed climate change for the flood despite his country's negligible emissions, Reuters reported. The FRLD itself was hard-won at the UN climate conferences of 2022 and 2023 by developing countries — many among the least responsible for climate change yet most vulnerable to its impacts — after calls for "climate reparations" from historically major emitters did not materialise, AFP noted.
What is solid
- The FRLD board agreed on Thursday to earmark US$20 million for Nepal — its first country-specific set-aside — reported independently by both AFP and Reuters.
- Nepal must submit a proposal for board approval before receiving the money; no firm timeline was given.
What is only claimed
- Exact flood tolls differ by source and date: Reuters cited officials saying about 1,500 killed and over 5,000 missing, AFP said more than 1,400 killed, and Nepal's disaster authority had earlier put deaths at 1,455 with 5,285 missing as of October 5 — the missing count in particular remains unverified.
This is the first real-world test of the UN's loss-and-damage promise: a fund created so climate-vulnerable countries that emitted almost nothing can get help after disasters. How fast Nepal's proposal is approved — and whether $20 million against a $4.78 billion bill is a precedent or a token — will shape trust in the fund worldwide, including in South Asia.