Baku, Azerbaijan – November 2024
Climate Finance was on the agenda at COP29. Climate Risk Institute Associate Mark Redwood attended the conference alongside Somalia’s delegation with the MoECC to support ongoing Climate Action Africa, a Global Affairs Canada Expert Deployment Mechanism, focusing on Somalia’s Climate Finance. Read on for Mark’s insights on climate finance discussions at this year’s conference. More on this CAA initiative here – “Enabling future investments and planning in support of Somalia’s climate adaptation.”
Attending COP 29 conference alongside Somalia in support of Climate Finance
By Mark Redwood, Water, Climate and Environment Expert
Climate Finance for Somalia’s National System
Climate finance is often touted as the cornerstone of global efforts to combat climate change, yet for countries like Somalia, the reality of accessing these funds remains fraught with challenges. At COP29, many countries including those in fragile settings, arrived with a well-defined vision: to secure the resources necessary to address the devastating impacts of climate change while building resilience for the future. Yet, the conference exposed some systemic barriers that persist in the global climate finance architecture.
A Clear Vision, but a Long Road Ahead
Somalia has rapidly established a set of laws and national plans that grounded in addressing its most pressing vulnerabilities: severe droughts, unpredictable rainfall, and coastal erosion. These documents and commitments – the NDC 3.0 process, the NAP, the National Climate Fund and multiple other laws and announcements – are about building up the national system into a credible set of institutions and actions that would build the confidence of international funders to invest in the country. However, competing agendas at COP29 – often parsing words, and disagreeing over “who pays” – relegate the concerns of fragile and conflict affected countries to the sidelines.
Missed Opportunities or Strategic Gains?
Throughout 2024, the Climate Risk Institute has been supporting the design of the national climate finance strategy for Somalia. The strategy, designed in partnership with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, connects local realities with global funding mechanisms, emphasizing innovative approaches like blended finance and community-based adaptation. This effort is getting attention, yet it raised a critical question: is it enough to secure the financial commitments Somalia urgently needs? The issue is critical. Unless Somalia has a credible national system to manage finance, it risks being by passed with investments flowing through international agencies or the UN system as an “safer” alternative to working with Somalia’s government. My view is that this short-term fix ultimately will undermine the broader goal of strengthening the national government into a transparent and effective stewards of climate finance resources.
The “Missing Middle” in Climate Finance
Somalia’s experience at COP29 highlights a recurring theme in global climate finance: the “missing middle.” While significant funds are available through mechanisms like the Green Climate Fund, the pathways to access these resources remain convoluted. Smaller-scale, locally driven projects—the backbone of Somalia’s adaptation efforts—struggle to meet the rigid criteria imposed by these mechanisms. Moreover, Somalia’s critical resource – a broad, innovative and powerful private sector – is largely absent from the discussions. The missing middle is the space between available funds, and project ideas. It is the “how to” design and deliver impactful projects and programs.
This gap is compounded by the lack of capacity to navigate complex funding processes. Somalia’s efforts to address this through partnerships with international organizations and technical support mechanisms are a step in the right direction, but more is needed.
Shifting the Narrative on Risk
One of the most striking challenges in Somalia’s climate finance journey is the narrative around risk. Perceived as a fragile state, Somalia often faces skepticism from potential donors. However, Somalia is working to reframe this narrative, emphasizing resilience, community leadership, and innovative governance reforms already underway. If climate finance is to be truly inclusive, it must recognize that risk is not a reason to exclude vulnerable countries but a call to invest in their resilience. Somalia’s strategy, focusing on building trust through transparency and accountability, could serve as a model for other nations navigating similar challenges.
Where Do We Go from Here?
COP29 may not have delivered the breakthrough Somalia and other fragile countries were hoping for, but it underscored the need for a total revision of how we approach climate finance. Somalia’s story is a microcosm of the broader struggles faced by vulnerable nations: ambitious plans, constrained by systemic barriers. From our standpoint, several near-term actions are critical:
- Sustained advocacy that will leverage the momentum gained through new and evolving relationships with key international agencies (GCF, UNDP, and INGOs active in the country);
- Targeted capacity building – both technical and operational – to ensure effective project design and delivery, including transparency and accountability for the finance.
- Partnership between the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MoECC) and other key ministries (Finance, planning etc.) to show national cohesion.
- A completed, endorsed and launched national climate finance strategy around which to consolidate donor support.
As Somalia continues its climate finance journey, its story offers valuable lessons for the global community. Investing in vulnerable countries is not charity; it is a shared responsibility and an opportunity to build a more resilient future for all. Leading into 2025, and through to COP30 in Belem, these four actions will remain high on the agenda for the country.
About Climate Action Africa (CAA)
CAA funded by Global Affairs Canada | Affaires mondiales Canada (GAC) and implemented by Alinea International, Econoler, and WSP in Canada, mobilizes targeted, short-term technical assistance across Sub-Saharan Africa to advance local climate goals aligned with the Paris Agreement. Through the Expert Deployment Mechanism for Climate Action in Africa (EDM-CAA), Canadian climate specialists partner with governments, NGOs, civil society organizations, the private sector, and post-secondary institutions to address local needs. CAA supports enhancing climate governance, promoting renewable energy, forest conservation, water resilience, and climate-smart agriculture. With a strong emphasis on empowering women as agents of change, CAA encourages inclusive leadership and South-South cooperation, advancing sustainable climate solutions throughout the region.
About the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MoECC)
For more information on the MOECC including the latest reports and plans on their climate finance approach, please visit: https://moecc.gov.so/
About the Climate Risk Institute
The Climate Risk Institute (CRI) works to advance practice and deliver services related to climate change risk assessment, adaptation planning, policy evaluation and resiliency. Learn more about CRI here.
