ADB announces fund to fight global warming

The head of the Asian Development Bank announced on Monday a new fund to combat damage caused by climate change, which he termed a "fundamental threat" to economies and livelihoods in Asia.

"I am pleased to announce that we will ... establish a Climate Change Fund, with an initial contribution from ADB resources of 40 million dollars (26 million euros)," Haruhiko Kuroda was quoted by AFP as saying in an inaugural address to the ADB's board of governors meeting in Madrid.

"The Fund will allow a more holistic approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation, including forestry and land use, changes in livelihood, health impacts, and increase emergencies and disasters caused by climate change.

"Climate change is a fundamental threat to achieving Asia's development objectives, and to life and livelihoods," the ADB president said.

The ADB said in a statement that some 1.2 billion people in the Asia-Pacific region could face freshwater shortages by 2020 owing to climate change, while crop yields in Central and South Asia could drop by half between now and 2050.

Asia's major coastal cities, including Bangkok, Jakarta, Karachi, Manila, Mumbai and Shanghai are vulnerable to flooding, it said.


Climate refugees

By the end the end of the century, residents of Tuvalu, the Maldives and coastal Bangladesh may become "climate refugees," it said.

"Asian developing countries are now ...