S'pore stepping up its efforts to adapt to climate impacts, says Grace Fu

Republic will develop inaugural adaptation plan to enhance its resilience against climate change: Minister

- Ang Qing Correspondent

As climate change continues to outpace the world’s collective response to the crisis, Singapore will be stepping up efforts to adapt to its impacts by developing the nation’s inaugural national adaptation plan over the next five years, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said on Nov 17.

Such a plan will serve as the nation’s long-term road map, outlining actions that the Republic can take to enhance its resilience.

In her delivery of Singapore’s national statement at the COP30 UN climate talks in the Brazilian city of Belem, Ms Fu pointed to how the country is taking steps to protect its coastlines from rising sea levels and its people against heat stress.

Singapore will also continue to advance efforts to cut emissions, she added.

At COP30, ministers from almost 200 nations have convened to kickstart the second week of the negotiations, which are expected to become more politically charged.

A main issue at the 2025 summit is adaptation - or how countries can build the resilience of their people against escalating climate impact. A key point of contention is how developing countries will get the funds they need to do so.

National adaptation plans are said to be important as they act as a blueprint for countries to access climate finance. The UN had asked countries to prepare such plans by 2025.

In her speech, Ms Fu pointed to the record temperatures of 2024 and increasingly frequent climate calamities. This is happening against a backdrop of intensifying geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty, which has put multilateral cooperation to the test, she added.