The terrible disaster in Nepal has now led Nepal to seek reparations, claiming that nations enriched by fossil fuels caused the glacier to melt. However, when other nations were shoring up defenses against climate extremes, Nepal wasted money. While the country desperately needs resources to handle climate crises, it has mismanaged or misallocated much of its climate budget.
According to Japan Times:
Nepal is seeking compensation for climate change-related damages from a United Nations fund set up to help developing nations deal with the worst impacts of global warming.
On Sept. 1, the country sent a letter to the fund’s co-chairs asking for immediate support and arguing that the international community’s promises “must move from commitments on paper to concrete action on the ground,” Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal told reporters last week. The letter did not quantify the losses or specify how much money the nation was requesting.
The United Nations Fund for responding to Loss and Damage emerged from annual global climate talks in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in 2022. It was intended to help address a central injustice of climate change: Developed countries, which became rich by taking advantage of fossil fuels, contributed the most to the problem, while poor countries that have emitted far less are the most likely to suffer the impacts of warming and are often the least prepared.
They estimate the damage at $5 billion.
The United Nations Fund for responding to Loss and Damage emerged from annual global climate talks in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in 2022.
It was intended to address an alleged central injustice of climate change by developed nations.
Corrupt Nepal Wants Western Funds
While neighboring countries have been actively building hard defenses, early-warning systems, and resilient infrastructure, critics and watchdogs have pointed out glaring failures in how Nepal uses its climate money.
Investigations by groups like Transparency International Nepal revealed that only about 20% of funds allocated for climate change actually reach the affected communities. The remaining 80% is heavily wasted on political seminars, high-level administrative meetings, consultations, and vehicle rentals for bureaucrats in Kathmandu.
Over the years, Nepal has collected over NPR $22 billion in domestic pollution taxes. They didn’t use the funds to clean the air or build resilient infrastructure. The government largely absorbed the funds into general administration. Sometimes, they used them to subsidize private industries.
Nepal’s climate policies look excellent on paper. However, local authorities in highly vulnerable mountainous regions often remain entirely unaware of the budgets or the strategies. Money intended for “climate-proofing” rural areas often gets diverted into generic local infrastructure. That includes poorly engineered dirt roads that actually increase landslide risks.
No amount of money will be enough until they clean up corruption. It wants billions without fixing its corrupt system.