UN CLIMATE SUMMIT What the 'Finance COP' has done for S-E Asia

While there is scope to fund the Asean power grid and protect regional forests, the developing bloc needs to unlock innovative finance.

- Shabana Begum

To the rest of the world, Pari Island may be just another of the thousands of islands that make up the vast Indonesian archipelago, some so tiny they do not have names.

But non-profit Friends of the Earth Indonesia is fighting for more visibility for the plight of its 1,500 inhabitants, who are facing the loss of their homes and fishery livelihoods as sea levels rise.

The island was partially inundated an unprecedented 10 times in 2023 by exceptionally high tides.

Island communities in South-east Asia, like those on Pari, have long grappled with worsening climate impacts, but often find it difficult to access the funds they need to become resilient against floods and typhoons.

Countries in the region also need assistance to phase out coal.

But the recently concluded UN Climate Change Conference COP29 could offer some hope, with developed countries agreeing to channel US$300 billion (S$402 billion) a year to developing countries by 2035.

The ultimate aim is to raise US$1.3 trillion annually by 2035 for countries in need, through various forms of finance.

But the US$300 billion core amount was criticised as woefully insufficient by climate-vulnerable countries and civil society, who expected richer countries – who were historical emitters – to commit more.

It is also uncertain how the amount will be raised.

While developed countries will take the lead, the COP29 decision stated that the amount will come from "a wide variety of sources, public and private, bilateral and multilateral, including alternative sources".

Mr Gao Xi, a research associate at the NUS Energy Studies Institute (ESI), said: "Most South-east Asian countries are coastal, making them particularly vulnerable to threats such as typhoons, floods and droughts caused by climate change.

Frequent extreme weather events often result in significant financial losses and social disruptions."