The Adaptation Fund has approved US$98.8 million in new projects, supporting communities already dealing with the realities of climate change. That's meaningful progress. But the Fund also missed its US$300 million annual mobilization target for the third consecutive year.
And that's the gap we need to talk about.
As COP31 opens in Antalya in ten days, on November 9, adaptation finance will be one of the conversations that really matters.
Last year's Belem decision promised to at least triple adaptation finance by 2035. It's an important commitment. But commitments alone don't build flood protection, secure water supplies, protect crops or help communities recover from increasingly extreme weather.
Look at the Loss and Damage Fund. It received requests worth US$2.8 billion from 119 countries, while its initial allocation was just $250 million, later increased to approximately $342 million.
The demand is clear. The financing gap is just as clear.
For me, one of the most important things to observe at COP31 isn't simply how much money gets announced.
It's whether countries can actually access it.
Can application processes become simpler? Can funding reach local communities faster? Can smaller and more vulnerable countries get support without navigating years of complicated procedures?
Because there's a real difference between announcing climate finance and getting it where it needs to go.
The real test of COP31 won't be the size of the pledges. It will be how much money reaches the ground, how quickly it gets there, and who actually benefits.
That's what I'll be listening for.