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ADB signs agreement to help SIDS

May 1, 2019 4:20 pm

The Asian Development Bank and the Government of Ireland today signed agreements to help Small Island Developing States.

This is the Ireland Trust Fund for Building Climate Change and Disaster Resilience for SIDS.

The trust fund is committing to an initial 6-year program of funding of $28 million for the period 2019 to 2024.

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Funding for the second half of 2019 will be $3million and it is predicted that some projects could commence this year.

The trust fund will primarily support technical assistance and capacity development in the SIDS.

ADB Vice-President Ahmed Saeed says they recognize that the Small Island Developing States are among the world’s most at-risk nations to natural hazards and the effects of climate change.

Saeed says they are delighted to partner with the Government of Ireland to establish this trust fund, which will help people in the region improve their resilience to climate change through activities such as financing climate-proof infrastructure, helping countries plan for and respond to climate change, and leveraging global climate resources for mitigation and adaptation efforts.

The overall objective of the fund is to increase the preparedness and resilience of SIDS to disasters caused by natural hazards and to the impact of climate change.

ADB member SIDS comprise Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.