Nepal seeks $20 million in compensation from 'major emitters' after flash floods

Nepal has requested $20 million in support from the United Nations, arguing that major carbon-emitting nations must share responsibility following flash floods that claimed over 1,300 lives.

According to *The Guardian* on September 8, Nepal is seeking $20 million in climate compensation following recent devastating flash floods.

 

A senior official issued this call to urge the world's top polluters to "wake up" and share the burden of a disaster that has left more than 1,300 people dead and over 5,500 missing.

 

Scientists attribute the disaster largely to the climate crisis. The flooding originated from a partial glacier collapse, triggering deadly landslides and flash floods that swept from Tibet (China) into Nepal.

 

Nepalese Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal bluntly demanded climate justice, emphasizing that the world's leading economies must join hands to assist the country's recovery and reconstruction.

 

He confirmed that Nepal's Ministries of Finance and Environment had jointly signed a request to the UN's Loss and Damage Fund—a mechanism established in 2022 under the Paris Agreement—seeking $20 million in compensation.

 

"We contribute very little to climate change. Nations that benefit from larger economies, higher emission rates, and greater historical cumulative emissions need to share the responsibility. This issue affects all of humanity," he said.

 

Nepal generates less than 0.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, whereas its neighbors, India and China, rank among the world's largest emitters. The Himalayas—spanning India, China, Nepal, and Bhutan—are warming nearly 50% faster than the global average.

 

In 2023, the United Nations warned that Nepal's glacial peaks had lost nearly a third of their ice in just over three decades due to global warming.

 

Mr. Khanal acknowledged that the aid Nepal requested "falls woefully short of the actual damage," with some estimates suggesting total flood-related losses could exceed $5 billion, or even more.

 

Although he initially seemed poised to single out India and China, the minister later softened his tone: "This is not the time to blame any specific country, but rather a time for us all to take collective action."

 

The United Nations has acknowledged that the Loss and Damage Fund is facing a "severe funding gap."

 

The fund has received requests for financial assistance totaling $2.8 billion from 119 countries, yet the international community has contributed only about $400 million. Notably, the U.S. has disbursed just $17 million following President Donald Trump's withdrawal of the country from the Paris Agreement.