Nepal seeks $20 million in climate compensation after deadly floods

The Big Picture

Nepal has asked the United Nations’ Loss and Damage Fund for $20 million in climate-related compensation after devastating floods and landslides that began on Aug. 26, putting renewed attention on the costs borne by countries with relatively low emissions but high exposure to climate hazards.

The request is under consideration, according to the UN. The fund was established in 2022 to help developing countries particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Nepal’s appeal comes as authorities and aid agencies continue search, rescue and relief operations in areas cut off by the disaster.

Nepal contributes less than 0.1% of global greenhouse-gas emissions, The Guardian reported. UN Resident Coordinator for Nepal Lila Pieters Yahia said the disaster showed the mounting losses faced by climate-vulnerable countries that have contributed little to climate change.

What Happened

The flooding began after a glacier collapse near the Nepal-Tibet border, according to the UN and reporting by The Guardian. The Guardian described a melting glacier that partially collapsed, triggering a landslide and flash floods that sent water, mud, ice, rocks and debris through riverside communities. India Today NE described the trigger as an ice-rock avalanche.

The UN said about 84,270 people were affected and that roads, schools, power grids and water systems were severely damaged across Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading in northern Nepal. Yahia said floods had washed away entire settlements and shifted riverbanks in some of the worst-hit areas.

The death and missing-person toll remains subject to differing updates. The Guardian reported more than 1,300 confirmed deaths and more than 5,500 people missing after 12 days of rescue operations. India Today NE, citing a Sept. 11 update from Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, reported 1,385 deaths and 5,130 people missing.

India Today NE also reported that authorities had rescued 13,676 people, deployed 21,022 security personnel and were sheltering displaced people in 37 holding centres. Those figures were not independently confirmed by the UN material provided.

Why It Matters

Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal told The Guardian that Nepal’s request was both an effort to secure recovery funding and a call for major polluting economies to accept shared responsibility. He said the country had suffered damage on a scale comparable to the 2015 earthquake and warned that the Himalayan disaster should not be treated as an isolated event.

Khanal said estimates put total flood damage above $5 billion, though he said the final amount could be higher. More than 20,000 homes may need to be rebuilt, he told The Guardian, and some riverbank communities that were washed away could need relocation to safer ground.

The $20 million request would cover only a small part of those reported losses. The Guardian reported that the Loss and Damage Fund had received requests totaling $2.8 billion from about 119 countries but had received around $400 million in international contributions.

What Happens Next

The UN and Nepal have launched a $49.6 million flash appeal intended to help 84,000 people through the end of December with shelter, healthcare and cash support. As of Sept. 9, $22 million had been received, according to the UN.

Immediate needs include restoring water systems, providing mobile clinics for pregnant women and expanding mental-health support, Yahia said. Access remains difficult for the most vulnerable communities, though the World Food Programme has used cargo drones to deliver food to places isolated by flooding, a first for an emergency operation in Nepal.

Families are also seeking to identify the dead. The Guardian reported that Nepali police posted images of recovered bodies and that volunteer groups in several countries have been comparing those images with missing-person information. Potential visual matches require DNA testing in Nepal for official confirmation.

Khanal said Nepal was discussing better regional coordination and data sharing with China. He said neither Nepal nor Chinese scientists had anticipated the specific glacier collapse before it happened, though the glacier had appeared fragile and had been receding in the preceding six months.