Zurich's flood alliance wants urgent action on climate-related losses

The Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance is calling for increased finance for severe weather adaptation at COP27, which is underway in Egypt, to ensure vulnerable people don’t “suffer due to the climate crisis”.

The Alliance, founded by Zurich Insurance Group and the Z Zurich Foundation, says climate adaptation costs in developing countries could reach up to $US300 billion ($467 billion) a year in 2030, yet international public finance barely amounts to 10% of this.

Global failures to mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis are causing massive losses and costly damages to the lives, livelihoods, and futures of communities around the world, it says.

“The large, and ever-growing, impacts of climate change – from the droughts in East Africa to floods in Pakistan – are a result of failures to adequately avert and minimise losses and damages, including through mitigation and adaptation.”

“A lack of accountability has led to several developed countries paying far less than their fair share of the total,” it said, adding that this year’s climate “finance gap” is forecast to be up to $US8 billion ($12.46 billion).

Climate-related losses and damages are expected to “take centre stage” at the COP27 meeting and many countries will be “pushing hard for tangible progress,” the Alliance said. It wants increased funding for flood resilience and “climate smart risk informed” development, strengthened flood policies globally, and better flood resilience practice.

It says efforts to address resultant losses and damages are “equally inadequate,” and the impacts of climate change are mostly borne by affected communities themselves. By 2050, economic losses in Nepal and Bangladesh are estimated to be around 2% of GDP, and the Alliance wants “massive investments and new approaches now” to increasing adaptation efforts and, where appropriate, “well-designed insurance schemes”.

“Systems need to be strengthened at all levels so that increased funding can be delivered effectively,” it says.