The deal was actually discussed last year by a specially formed working group, although the process was extremely difficult. Today the deputy chairman called it ‘a difficult process, one I don’t want to go through again’.

The United Arab Emirates has pledged to contribute $100 million (more than €91 million) to the fund. Germany also contributed the same amount. Britain wants to contribute 60 million pounds (more than 69 million euros) to a climate damage fund.

‘Poor countries contribute the least’

US climate envoy John Kerry was late in agreeing to the plan, but has now said he would ‘fully’ support a climate damage fund. America pledged $17.5 million.

RTL News climate expert Heleen Ekker talks about ‘important decisions’. “The Global Climate Damage Fund is very important for developing countries. They have been pushing this in recent years. The impact of increasingly extreme weather due to climate change is already starting to be felt in poor countries. at least against greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gases that warm the earth.”

According to Ekker, examples of such impacts are periods of extreme heat and drought, or heavy rains that can cause flooding. “These funds can be used to pay for damage and losses suffered by countries as a result.”

The Netherlands has not announced whether and, if so, how much funding will be provided to the fund. According to Ekker, the Netherlands will announce this at the climate summit. Dutch European Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra has announced that the European Union will invest a total of at least 225 million euros in the fund.

Dutch Climate Minister Rob Jetten responded that he was pleased with the agreement. “It is good news that there is an agreement regarding damage and loss funds. Over the past year, the Netherlands has been campaigning for a fund that provides access to the world’s most vulnerable countries.”

Dubai Climate Summit: 3 main themes

There are three main themes at the top of the agenda at the climate summit in Dubai this week: mitigation, or reducing greenhouse gas emissions, adaptation (adapting to the consequences of climate change) and funding measures and assistance to vulnerable countries.

Under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, every effort must be made to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees. And that would be quite difficult, as Ekker explains in the video below: