[V20 Ministerial Dialogue IX: “When is Now?”] Climate-vulnerable economies: Climate disasters and debt are a vicious cycle
The V20 Group of Finance Ministers from 58 climate-vulnerable economies today demanded reforms in the global financing architecture as they face mounting economic threats from climate disasters and debt. V20 countries have at least USD435 billion of debt servicing payments due in four years at a time when new investment is severely needed, the Group noted in its V20 Ministerial Dialogue IX Communique.
As disaster hits the Philippines again, a farmer’s sorrow reveals the stakes [Washington Post]
PALAWAN, Philippines — The skies were still clear when the farmer went to take a final look at his crops. A massive tropical cyclone was hours away from making landfall in the northern Philippines, and the province of Nueva Ecija, known as the “rice granary” of the country, was in the center of its path. Officials warned that more than a million hectares (2.47 million acres) of farmland could be flattened just before harvesting season, devastating the poor, rural communities that have increasingly shouldered the brunt of the country’s natural disasters.
Poorer nations face rising debt servicing costs in 2024 – report
Some of the nations most vulnerable to climate change face a sharp rise in debt service payments in the coming two years, hampering their ability to invest in climate proofing and shoring up their economies, a research report found. The Vulnerable Group of Twenty (V20) - a group of 55 economies exposed to the fallout from climate change - expect debt service payments to rise to $69 billion by 2024 - the highest level in the current decade, according to calculations from the V20 and the Boston University Global Development Policy Centre.
As cost of climate change rises, UN urges compensation [Washington Post]
From drought to floods and sea level rise, the cost of damage caused by climate change will only get higher as the world warms, sparking concerns from both top officials and activists about how to pay for it. “Loss and damage from the climate crisis is not a future event. It is happening now, all around us,” said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on a visit to Pakistan, which recently suffered from devastating floods that displaced hundreds of thousands of people and left over a thousand dead.
Storms, floods to cost PHL $124 billion by 2050
STRONG STORMS, heavy flooding and prolonged droughts may result in around $124 billion in losses to the Philippine economy between 2022 and 2050, according to research firm GHD. This translates to an average annual gross domestic product (GDP) loss of 0.7% for the Philippines, GHD said in a statement following the release of its report “Aquanomics: The economics of water risk and future resilience.”