BALI, INDONESIA, June 1, 2022 – Governments and civil society groups from South and Southeast Asia signed an agreement to enable inclusive, gender equitable, and human rights-based climate and disaster financing for vulnerable nations.

“Worsening climate change impacts, particularly episodic extreme weather events, are threatening no less than the long-term economic viability of developing countries. Climate and disaster risk finance and insurance (CDRFI) is thus central to the response to such an existential threat by making urgently needed resources available and by providing more inclusive and responsive services. Through CDRFI, countries can develop stronger, more coordinated climate change and disaster strategies,” said Sönke Kreft, executive director of the Munich Climate Insurance Initiative (MCII), in a workshop hosted by the Manila-based international think tank Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) from May 30 to June 1.

The workshop was carried out under the Multi-Actor Partnership (MAP) project on climate and disaster risk finance in the context of the InsuResilience Global Partnership (IGP), a global initiative that aims to protect essential sectors from climate change and disasters risks and by promoting stronger ties between governments, civil society groups, academia, and the private sector. 

Participants represented government agencies and civil society groups in the Philippines, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), Vietnam, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka.

“We recognize that the systemic problems of society will be further exacerbated by climate impacts, both rapid and slow onset events. We also recognize that these impacts, though encompassing, will disproportionately affect people depending on their levels of vulnerability,” country representatives said in a common agreement which served as the output of the three-day regional workshop, days after the conclusion of the Seventh Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction of the United Nations.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in their latest physical science report, said extreme weather events will be more prominent in the region – particularly stronger tropical storms in Southeast Asia, and more frequent and intense heat waves in South Asia – making initiatives like CDRFI all the more crucial.

According to the agreement, “From the resource sessions, country presentations, and workshops, it is clear that even if we have a gargantuan task ahead of us, we remain positive that successful risk layering and management can be pushed through a concerted effort of various stakeholders. We all have a role to play to start this process, no contribution is too small.”

Sara Jane Ahmed, founder of the Financial Futures Center and advisor to the Vulnerable 20 (V20) Group of Ministers of Finance, cited the way CDRFI tools are being developed under the G20+ and V20 InsuResilience Global Partnership with the aim to protect 500 million poor and vulnerable people by 2025 against physical climate shocks, including the Sustainable Insurance Facility and the Global Risk Modelling Alliance.

“Smart premium subsidization and access to risk analytics are key ingredients to build markets that can help manage climate-fueled risks, drive investments, and build prepared institutions in a highly effective way and to encourage a system that delivers resilience, climate justice, and prosperity, to economies and vulnerable communities,” she added.

“The pandemic has shown us opportunities and the limits of conventional approaches. Taking a few steps back has allowed us to see what we can do together, driven by the opportunity to more responsive and effective ways to collaborate. We certainly hope to reach more countries in the following years as we deepen our engagement with Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand,” said Angelo Kairos Dela Cruz, deputy executive director of ICSC, who leads the implementation of MAP in the Philippines.

“We are looking at different country systems to understand and advance what works and how initiatives can be scaled up and replicated regionally and globally. This is an opportunity for our common enterprise  to take on more responsibilities and roles in Asia,” added Dela Cruz.

 

ABOUT MAP

The Multi-Actor Partnership (MAP) on climate and disaster risk finance in the context of the InsuResilience Global Partnership (IGP) is a global project implemented by a group of civil society organizations from Laos, Sri Lanka, Malawi, Madagascar, Senegal, Philippines, Caribbean, and Germany.

In addition to global level influencing work, the core of the MAP in the Philippines will be engagement at both the national and subnational level, capacity development and the establishment of MAP on climate risk finance. This project is funded by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and is coordinated by CARE Germany together with Germanwatch and the Munich Climate Insurance Initiative (MCII). For more information, visit this link.

CONTACT
Ira Guerrero, ICSC: media@icsc.ngo, +63 917 149 5649, +63 998 546 9788

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