RAPID REACTION: LAUNCH OF THE CALL FOR FUNDING REQUESTS TO THE FUND FOR RESPONDING TO LOSS AND DAMAGE

Today at COP 30 in Belém, Brazil, the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) launched the call for funding requests for the start up phase of the Fund —the Barbados Implementation Modalities (BIM). Here is our reaction to this historic first for  Loss and Damage caused by the climate crisis. 

We welcome the launch of the call for funding request by the FRLD. The recent and ongoing Loss and Damage suffered by Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti as a result of Hurricane Melissa, the Philippines as a result of back-to-back typhoons Fung-wong and Kalmaegi, and Brazil as a result of a powerful tornado in Rio Bonito do Iguacu, Brazil, demonstrates the urgency of addressing loss and damage. 

The BIM provides a critical opportunity for the FRLD to learn through doing at the same time as the Fund’s Board works to develop its long term policies. The projects and programs delivered under the BIM will provide long overdue support to countries and communities who have until now picked up the bill for loss and damage wrought by a #ClimateCrisis they have done little or nothing to cause. 

Once the call for funding requests officially opens on the 15th of December, developing countries will have six months to submit their requests, with the Board expected to start approving disbursals in June 2026. We therefore urge developing countries to start working on funding proposals immediately and where needed to seek technical assistance from the Santiago Network to support the development of funding requests. We also expect the FRLD to provide support to countries developing funding requests. 

With only 250 million USD allocated to the BIM for funding requests between 5-20 million, the number of projects/programs that can be funded will be limited. However, we urge developing countries to make as many funding requests as possible —the greater the number of proposals, the more pressure will be exerted to increase the scale of the FRLD and mobilise resources. We make this call with the understanding that funding proposals that are not selected will remain in the FRLD’s funding pipeline for further development and consideration when more money is available.

However, despite the BIM being a cause for celebration, the stark reality is that the FRLD must be filled with at least 400 billion USD a year and thus the 250 million USD allocated to the BIM is just a drop in the ocean compared to the Loss and Damage finance needs of developing countries. 

Economic quantification of the #LossAndDamage finance needs of developing countries by scientists projects that they will need a staggering 395 [128–937] billion USD in 2025 alone. Whilst our calculations suggest that 724.43 billion USD a year needs to flow though the loss and damage Funding Arrangements which includes the FRLD, Santiago Network, Warsaw International Mechanisms and other arrangements such as humanitarian and other international funds.

Yet to date only 788.80 million USD pledged to the FRLD* of which just 583.14 million USD has been turned into contribution agreements —less than 0.2 percent of what is needed each year. As a result the Fund only has 407.35 million USD in its bank account and if we take away the 250 million USD allocated to the BIM that will leave just 157.35 million USD in its bank account. Therefore there is a real risk that the FRLD could run out of money in 2027 if there are not a significant number of pledges at COP 30 and if a robust long term resource mobilisation strategy is not put in place. 

* This figure does not include the pledge made by Spain during the World Leaders summit ahead of COP 30. 

Why is the BIM so small? Ultimately it is because developed countries have failed to meet their obligations under the UNFCCC and its Paris Agreement to provide #LossAndDamage finance at a scale that is commensurate with the needs of developing countries. 

With the delivery of the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) historic Advisory Opinion on the Obligations of States in Regard to climate change it has been clarified that #climateAction is not optional — it's the law. Therefore we expect developed countries to come to COP 30 ready to provide their fair share of Loss and Damage finance. 

With the learning generated by the BIM expected to inform the development of the long term policies of the FRLD, it will be critical for funding requests to reflect the wide range of Loss and Damage that developing countries are facing. We therefore hope that the funding request will reflect the need for the FRLD to address non-economic loss and damage for example to culture, identity, language, biodiversity, health, mental health and wellbeing. Economic loss and damage to critical infrastructure such as schools and health centers and lively hoods. Loss and damage associated with displacement, planned relocation and human mobility challenges and much more.  

Despite the operationalisation of the BIM failing to put in place mechanisms to release funding rapidly (e.g. in the aftermath of a hurricane) and small grants directly to communities from the FRLD. There is nothing stopping developing countries from including rapid response and small grants at the national level in their funding proposals. For example, a country may propose a program that would rapidly disburse money from a national Loss and Damage Fund to local authorities following an extreme loss and damage event and deliver small grants directly to people in the affected communities.    

To submit their funding requests developing countries will need to appoint focal points to the FRLD. We therefore call on all developing countries to nominate focal points as soon as possible if they have not already done so. 
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The capacity and resources challenges that developing countries have faced when preparing requests for technical assistance to the Santiago Network suggest they may need support in addition to what the FRLD and Santiago Network will provide to develop funding requests. Therefore, it will be critical for civil society organisations and funders to help to increase the capacity of developing countries to make the funding requests. We therefore stand ready to support countries who wish to make funding requests and/or access technical assistance from the Santiago Network.  

Lastly, the consideration of the 2025 annual report of the FRLD at COP30 will also provide an important opportunity to address the issues of scale, rapid disbursement and small grants. This is because when considering the report, countries will have the opportunity to provide guidance to the FRLD. We therefore expect countries to request the Board of the fund to expedite the development of the Fund's long term policies on rapid disbursement of funds and small grants and to ensure the FRLD is disbursing at least 400 billion USD a year by 2030.