UN Launches Climate Resilience Fund to Assist Refugees

The United Nations launched a fund on Wednesday to support refugees and internally displaced persons facing climate shocks, aiming to raise $100 million by the end of 2025.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced in a statement that its work to enhance resilience to climate change is part of its protection and assistance activities for over 114 million people worldwide.

UNHCR spokesperson Olga Sarado stated that the Climate Resilience Fund launched today encompasses all of UNHCR's climate-related activities, including the Environmental Protection Fund for Refugees established in 2021," adding that the fund has garnered about $5 million in commitments.

The agency emphasized that the new fund will finance initiatives aimed at protecting communities most vulnerable to risks by providing them with the means to prepare for, cope with, and overcome climate-related hazards.

Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, stated in the release that the impacts of climate change are increasingly devastating, exacerbating conflicts, destroying livelihoods, and ultimately leading to population displacement.

In 2022, 70% of refugees and asylum seekers came from countries highly exposed to climate change.

Grandi noted that many countries hosting the largest numbers of refugees are also the most affected by the impacts of climate change, stressing that funding allocated to address the impacts of climate change does not benefit forcibly displaced persons or the communities hosting them.

The fund aims to enhance the inclusion of refugees in climate policies adopted at the national and local levels.

It also seeks to expand the scope and impact of climate action undertaken by UNHCR and its partners, empowering the agency and its partners to participate in climate-related projects in countries grappling with major displacement crises, such as Bangladesh, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Mozambique.

It is expected that the fund will enable the provision of sustainable environmental resources in displacement areas by providing more clean energy, for example, to operate water infrastructure, schools, and health services used by refugees and host communities.

Moreover, the fund will facilitate the construction of climate-resilient shelters and work to reduce the environmental impact of humanitarian responses.