COP30 has now moved into its decisive endgame, with ministers entering high-stakes negotiations that will determine whether Belém delivers meaningful outcomes for people already on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Adaptation finance — long seen as the weakest link in global climate action — has now surged to the centre of the talks.
Momentum is growing behind the Least Developed Countries’ proposal to triple adaptation finance to USD 120 billion a year, a demand now backed by an increasingly broad coalition of developing nations.
The LDC proposal to triple adaptation finance is not only reasonable — it is necessary. It is one of the most sensible and constructive ideas on the table at COP30, and it deserves strong support.Mattias Söderberg, Global Climate Lead, DanChurchAid
For many vulnerable countries, the stakes are existential. While negotiators continue to debate how to measure adaptation progress, funding for real adaptation on the ground is falling far behind needs — a frustration widely shared across the global south.
“Adaptation should happen now in communities facing drought, heatwaves and flooding. What is missing is the money. Without finance, all talk about climate-resilient development rings hollow,” Söderberg said.
With the arrival of Brazil’s President Lula and UN Secretary-General António Guterres — a rare joint appearance in week two — expectations have risen that political momentum may be building for a deal.
But DanChurchAid warns that adaptation finance must not be sidelined in the final bargaining.
“Adaptation finance must stay at the heart of the COP30 package. It cannot be traded away in the final hours. People on the frontlines need resources, not rhetoric, and they need them now,” Söderberg said.
CONTACT
Global Climate Lead, DanChurchAid, Mattias Söderberg
WhatsApp: +45 29 700 609
Email: msd@dca.dk
