Philippines to host Loss and Damage Fund Board meeting

THE Philippines will host the Loss and Damage Fund Board meeting in December, Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ma. Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga said Wednesday, October 16, 2024. In a press conference, Loyzaga said the board is expected to come up with several agreements, including who will be "funding the Loss and Damage Fund Board.

” “The whole idea of the board and the fund is actually so that there can be funding sources from other than countries specifically,” Loyzaga said. The Philippines has secured a seat in the inaugural Loss and Damage Fund Board at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai in December 2023. The country will serve as a full member of the board in 2024 and 2026 while an alternate member in 2025, representing the Asia Pacific Group along with United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan in a term-sharing agreement.



The loss and damage fund intends to provide financial assistance to support countries, such as the Philippines and other island states, struggling to cope with loss and damage caused by climate change beyond adaptation. Developed countries have pledged over $700 million as their initial capital to address the negative consequences of climate change, which include the rising sea levels, prolonged heat waves, desertification, the acidification of the sea and extreme events, such as bushfires, species extinction, and crop failures. President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

earlier said the Philippines is one of the countries that are least responsible but suffer the most due to climate change. The chief executive also raised the importance of the country’s resiliency and preparedness against any calamities and the destruction they can cause, noting that over the past two years, almost a hundred evacuation centers have already been built across the country. The government also activated the newly established Disaster Response Command Center in January, which shall serve as the central hub for the government’s disaster response efforts.

In a bid to lessen the impact of heavy rains, over 5,500 flood control projects have been completed in flood-prone areas. (TPM/SunStar Philippines).