The UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, delivered a major diplomatic win for climate-vulnerable nations, including the Solomon Islands, with the formal operationalisation of the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD).
The launch marks the first time real financing has been made available to help countries recover from the irreversible impacts of climate change—impacts already felt across the Solomon Islands and other low lying atolls island in the Pacific through sea-level rise, stronger storm surges, and the erosion of coastal communities.
In a major step forward, the FRLD has now opened its inaugural call for funding requests under the Barbados Implementation Modalities (BIM), the Fund’s start-up phase. An initial US$250 million has been made available in grants for developing countries.
This includes , Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs)—categories that include the Solomon Islands—are guaranteed at least 50% of this initial allocation.
Eligible projects will range between US$5 million and US$20 million, covering both economic losses, such as infrastructure and livelihoods, and non-economic losses, including cultural heritage and displacement.
Despite the historic milestone, Solomon Islands negotiators and civil society representatives remain cautious, raising concerns about the scale, speed, and accessibility of the funds.
On the other hand Experts warn that the US$250 million start-up package is vastly insufficient against the projected US$400–900 billion needed annually by 2030 to address loss and damage worldwide.
Pacific nations are calling for a clear replenishment plan from major emitters.
Under the current system, countries must prepare detailed project proposals to access funds. Pacific delegates at COP30 argued this approach is too slow in the wake of sudden disasters such as cyclones, calling instead for simplified and rapid-release mechanisms.
With the new momentum comes months after the landmark International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion, which affirmed that states have a legal obligation to prevent and address climate-driven harm.
Pacific nations, including the Solomon Islands, strongly supported this move, seeing it as a foundation for demanding scaled-up, grant-based finance.
Pacific leaders were vocal at COP30, insisting that loss and damage funding is not optional, but a responsibility of major polluters.
Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka reminded global leaders that, “Loss and damage finance is not aid—this is about justice and survival for Pacific peoples.”
Tuvalu’s Minister for Finance, Seve Paeniu, echoed similar concerns, warning that without predictable and adequate financing,
“Entire nations will face the real threat of displacement.” he said.
From the Solomon Islands delegation, Minister of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology, Hon. Polycarp Paea, emphasised that climate finance is “a legal, moral, and shared human obligation,” reaffirming the country’s appeal for faster and fairer access to funding.
Speaking on behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum Chair at the 3rd High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Finance last week, Environment Minister Polycarp Paea said Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are bearing the brunt of a climate crisis they did not create.
Despite producing less than 0.03 percent of global emissions, SIDS face accelerating sea-level rise, stronger storms, and threats to culture, sovereignty and livelihoods.
Paea said these realities sharpen the call for climate finance grounded in fairness, equity and international responsibility.
He pointed to the recent International Court of Justice advisory opinion, which affirmed that developed nations have binding obligations to provide adequate finance, technology transfer and capacity-building to vulnerable countries, particularly SIDS and Least Developed Countries.
“This obligation is not discretionary,” Paea said.
“It is grounded in the core principles of the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement he adds.
Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, rich countries are obliged to deliver financial support to help vulnerable countries confront the escalating impact of climate change.
At last year’s climate summit, countries agreed to mobilize at least $300 billion annually by 2035 for climate finance to developing countries.
Minister Paea further emphasised that this reality strengthens the call for climate finance based on fairness, equity, and international responsibility.
He highlighted the recent International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion, which reaffirmed that developed countries have binding legal obligations to provide adequate financing, technology transfer, and capacity-building support to vulnerable countries—especially SIDS and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
“This obligation is not discretionary,” he said.
“It is grounded in the core principles of the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement,” he added.
With the FRLD now operating alongside the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) and the Santiago Network, attention shifts to ensuring the funds move swiftly to the most vulnerable communities.
The Solomon Islands government is expected to begin preparing proposals under the BIM framework as it develops new strategies to address climate-related loss and damage nationwide.
Meanwhile at the conclusion of the COP30 in Belem, Brazil, Türkiye–Australia partnership marks a significant diplomatic breakthrough for vulnerable Pacific Island nations, ensuring their climate realities remain central to COP31.
With Türkiye set to host the summit and Australia steering negotiations with a Pacific-focused mandate, the arrangement delivers renewed hope that the voices of Small Island Developing States — including the Solomon Islands — will shape the outcomes of the world’s most critical climate talks. As preparations begin, the region now looks to COP31 with strengthened confidence that its urgent calls for climate action will no longer be sidelined but placed firmly at the heart of global decision-making.
By ULUTAH GINA
Solomon Star, Gizo
Note: This story was produced as part of the 2025 Virtual Climate Change Media Partnership, a journalism fellowship organized by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security.
