New Report exposes Climate Finance Failures

According to the UN, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have suffered USD 153 billion in climate-related losses over the past five decades

A groundbreaking climate finance report, released today by the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) and Henley & Partners, highlights the failings in funding urgent climate action and explores how investment migration can unlock vital resources for climate resilience in the world’s most at-risk nations.

The CVF, an international organization of 70 climate-vulnerable countries representing 1.75 billion people — 20% of the global population — accounts for just 6% of global emissions yet faces the most severe impacts of climate breakdown. By 2030, these nations will require an estimated USD 500 billion annually to fund climate action, development, and nature preservation.

As CVF Secretary-General and former President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, points out in the Citizenship by Investment: Sustainable Climate Finance for Governments report, global climate finance remains sluggish, restrictive, and largely inaccessible to those who need it most. “While wealthy nations delay climate action and funding commitments, frontline countries are left fighting for survival. The international financial system is failing us, and we need bold solutions to shift the balance of power in climate finance. Over the past two decades, CVF countries have already lost 20% of their potential GDP growth due to climate impacts. We cannot rely on charity from industrialized nations. Urgent initiatives are needed to ensure direct and immediate access to climate finance.”

Mobilizing private capital for climate resilience
Through its globally leading international government advisory practice, Henley & Partners has been providing strategic consulting to countries on the development, implementation, and management of investment-based residence and citizenship programs. To date, the firm has facilitated over USD 15 billion in foreign direct investment in many states. Its most recent initiative led to the establishment of the first climate-related citizenship investment program, the Nauru Economic and Climate Resilience Citizenship Program.

Commenting in the report, H.E. Hon. David W.R. Adeang, M.P., President of the Republic of Nauru, says “our program funds critical resilience initiatives — from coastal reinforcement to modernized water management and sustainable food production. Similar models have strengthened climate resilience in small island states like Grenada and Antigua and Barbuda, but Nauru’s is the first to put climate adaptation at its core. The innovations we implement against rising seas can help shape global strategies for resilience.”

According to the UN, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have suffered USD 153 billion in climate-related losses over the past five decades, despite contributing less than 1% of global emissions, and the financial burden on these nations is further exacerbated by a USD 34 billion climate adaptation finance gap. Compounding these challenges, 70% of SIDS exceed sustainable debt levels, and climate disaster damages in these regions have surged by 90% from 2011 to 2022.

Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners, says “by mobilizing international investment, we can provide immediate, non-debt funding for climate resilience projects, offering a crucial financial lifeline for vulnerable nations while enabling investors to support global climate action. Rethinking how private wealth and capital intersects with public financing needs is key to bridging the climate finance gap.”

From sovereign debt to sovereign equity
The report outlines how investment migration programs can be structured to create Investment Migration Resilience Funds (IMRFs) that channel private capital into critical climate resilience projects without increasing national debt. By linking these programs with natural capital endowment trusts, countries can secure sustainable revenue streams to finance coastal protection, carbon offset initiatives, and the expansion of the blue economy. Successful models of this approach include leveraging blue bonds, eco-tourism, and carbon credit markets to generate funds for climate adaptation and economic diversification.

Henley & Partners’ Chief Economist Jean Paul Fabri explains how, “effective IMRFs will operate like sovereign wealth funds, aimed at reducing economic fluctuations, funding long-term sustainability initiatives, and providing a financial cushion against climate and economic challenges. However, they differ from traditional models by incorporating climate finance, risk management, and economic development into their governance.”

“For too long, climate-vulnerable nations have been told to adapt, cope, and endure — as if resilience were simply an act of will, rather than a matter of investment,” insists Sara Jane Ahmed, Managing Director of CVF and V20 Finance Advisor at the CVF-V20 Secretariat. “By funding climate resilience, the world is not just aiding at-risk nations — it is unlocking markets, strengthening economies, and shaping a shared future. The future belongs not to those who wait, but to those bold enough to build it.”