Statement delivered by Mr. Woochong Um, Managing Director General, Office of the President, Asian Development Bank

V20 MINISTERIAL DIALOGUE VIII- 21 April, 2022

 Statements

10:00 pm Dhaka time/12:00 pm Washington DC time

Statement delivered by Mr. Woochong Um, Managing Director General, Office of the President, Asian Development Bank

Mr. Woochong Um

Managing Director General, Office of the President, Asian Development Bank

Excellencies and distinguished colleagues, on behalf of the Asian Development Bank, I am pleased to join the V20 ministerial dialogue. I am delighted to share on ADB support to V20 Initiatives and Partnerships. The battle against climate change will be won or lost in the Asia and the Pacific region. And meeting this challenge requires coordination and partnership. ADB is playing a leading role with our developing members and key partners to deploy new and innovative investments, knowledge and strategies to meet this critical challenge. ADB is supporting our developing member countries to implement their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) through our NDC advanced platform and our investment pipeline.

ADB’s Asia Pacific Climate Finance Fund, ACLiFF, is a key partner of the V20’s Sustainable Insurance Facility (SIF). ADB is committed to support the development of climate and disaster risk insurance solutions in V20 economies of Asia and the Pacific. Established in April 2017, with the support of the government for Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), ACLiFF is a multi-donor trust fund managed by the Asian Development Bank. ACliFF aims to unlock capital for climate investments and improve resilience to the impacts of the climate change, through the use of  financial risk management products. In July 2021, ACliFF approved the flagship project to develop climate and disaster risk management and insurance solutions for micro, small and medium sized enterprises in the Philippines. It represents the first implementation of the V20’s Sustainable Insurance Facility (SIF). ACliFF and the V20 support for building the climate and disaster resilience of micro, small and medium size enterprises is a concrete effort catered to address the climate smart insurance gap in these enterprises. It will help build the climate resilience and support the transition to net zero. Micro and small and medium enterprises are driving forces behind the economies of developing countries in the Asia and the Pacific region and building their resilience against the climate risk is vital. Many vulnerable and low income groups are increasingly employed by micro, small and medium sized enterprises. And ACliFF and V20’s support is essential to support many business owners, employees and the communities these enterprises serve. ACliFF complements the InsuResilience Global Partnership (IGP) to support a joint G20 and V20 initiative and its vision 2025 target for covering 500 million poor and vulnerable individuals against climate and disaster shocks by 2025.

We look forward to even stronger collaboration that has commenced through the ACliFF’s support for the V20’s Sustainable Insurance Facility (SIF). We are committed to expand this collaboration to other V20 members in the Asia and the Pacific region in support of the global shield against climate risk. Let me close by reiterating a statement made previously by president Asakawa that “ADB provides unwavering commitment to scale up climate action through finance, technical assistance and collaboration with our developing countries and development partners”. Thank you very much.

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