South Asian Advocates Say Climate Finance Falls Trillions Short of Needs

South Asian civil society leaders used a Nov. 14, 2026, COP31 press conference to argue that developed countries are overstating what they deliver in climate finance, citing just $35 billion in additional finance in 2022 against needs of $5.6 trillion to $5.9 trillion a year. The informational briefing produced no votes or formal decisions. It did put a clear set of demands before COP31 negotiators: grant-based money, faster access to loss-and-damage funds, and an accountability mechanism.

• Only $35 billion in additional climate finance was delivered in 2022, an advocate from India said, disputing OECD figures
• 70% of Asia-Pacific climate finance is debt-creating, and only 0.3% reaches the Pacific, advocates said
• Nepal's $4.7 billion flood losses were contrasted with a $21 million loss-and-damage announcement
• A Green Climate Fund project took 7 years to approve, a Nepali advocate said, calling for direct access
• 9.2 million people were displaced in South Asia in 2024, prompting a call for a dedicated fund

Why it matters: Advocates say the way climate finance is counted and delivered leaves the Asia-Pacific region and other vulnerable countries underfunded. They say much of the money arrives as debt rather than grants, and too little of it reaches the most exposed places. That argument lands as countries debate a goal of $300 billion a year by 2035.