Climate change
Supporting the Indo-Pacific to tackle climate change
Australia supports climate change action through its development assistance program, guided by the Climate Change Action Strategy. The Strategy sets three key objectives to make the best use of our development assistance:
- support partner countries to adapt to climate change, and to plan, prepare for and respond to climate related impacts
- promote the shift to lower-emissions development in the Indo-Pacific region
- support innovative solutions to climate change, including those that engage private sector investment.
Support to our region includes:
Putting more resources behind our climate work
Australia has doubled its climate finance commitment to $2 billion for developing countries over 2020-25.
- This is a $500 million increase from the initial $1.5 billion commitment for the period and a doubling of Australia's 2015-20 climate finance pledge to help Indo-Pacific countries tackle climate change.
- The new commitment also increases the proportion that will be delivered in the Pacific, from $500 million to $700 million to be spent on climate adaptation and resilience, disaster preparedness and renewable energy projects.
- Australia will also step up its work with the private sector to achieve impact at scale in the Indo-Pacific region, and to support the goals of the Paris Agreement.
- Australia has robust methods for counting climate finance.
Key climate change initiatives
| Initiatives | Description |
|---|---|
| Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific (AIFFP) | AIFFP is partnering with governments and the private sector in the Pacific and Timor-Leste to provide grant and loan financing for high quality, transformational energy, water, transport, telecommunications and other infrastructure. |
| Australia Pacific Climate Partnership (APCP) | Australia is working with Pacific Island governments to support climate and disaster resilient and to encourage low carbon growth in the region. |
| Climate and Oceans Support Program in the Pacific (COSPPac) | COSPPac is working to enhance the capacity of Pacific islands to manage and mitigate the impacts of climate variability and tidal events. The team are working with stakeholders to forecast and report on climate, tides and the ocean. |
| Australian Climate Finance Partnership (ACFP) | ACFP is a concessional finance facility supporting climate action in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. It is managed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and funded by the Australian Government. |
| Australia’s Science and Technology for Climate Partnerships (SciTech4Climate) | SciTech4Climate will bring leading Australian scientists and climate specialists to work together with development partners in the Indo-Pacific to make sure our region’s response to climate change is supported by the best available science and technological advances. |
| Climate Resilient by Nature | Australia’s new Climate Resilient by Nature program works with local communities to conserve and rehabilitate ecosystems to address climate change in the Pacific. |