BELÉM, Brazil — Nations seeking more money to withstand the effects of a hotter world are mounting a simultaneous crusade that may be just as crucial — cutting the bureaucracy to let them access the cash.
Climate-vulnerable countries at the COP30 climate talks in Belém are pushing to pare back the cumbersome U.N. reporting and application requirements that bog down their requests for assistance. The same countries are also calling for rich nations to triple the $40 billion per year they previously promised to provide for climate adaptation.
The concurrent efforts seek to rectify inequities disproportionately affecting nations that struggle to absorb climate shocks.
“Communities in coastal areas are drowning under the sea, but bureaucrats like me are also drowning under paper,” said Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez, the Panamanian climate envoy who has spearheaded the campaign. “We’re drowning on silly reporting rules, on red tape, on bureaucracy.”
