Nepal Seeks $20 Million From UN Fund After Deadly August Floods

Nepal is appealing to the United Nations' Loss and Damage Fund for $20 million in compensation, arguing the country needs concrete climate justice rather than expressions of sympathy following devastating floods in August.

Environment Minister Geeta Chaudhary told Deutsche Welle that Kathmandu is still recovering from the flooding, which struck the Himalayan nation last month. She said Nepal's appeal is directed at the Loss and Damage Fund, a mechanism established under the UN climate process to help vulnerable countries cope with impacts of climate change they did little to cause.

The Loss and Damage Fund was agreed by nations at the UN's COP27 climate summit in 2022 and formally launched the following year, intended to channel financial support to countries hit hardest by climate-related disasters, including floods, droughts and rising seas. Nepal, like many mountainous and low-lying nations, has argued that wealthy, high-emitting countries bear disproportionate responsibility for the extreme weather battering more vulnerable states.

Chaudhary's comments reflect a broader argument that Nepal and other developing nations have pressed at international climate forums: that condolences from wealthier nations are not enough, and that funding commitments must be honoured and expanded.

Nepal is considered one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change despite contributing minimally to global greenhouse gas emissions. Its glacier-fed rivers and monsoon-dependent geography make it prone to flash flooding, glacial lake outburst floods and landslides, hazards scientists say are intensifying as global temperatures rise.