A new report by Adelphi warns that climate change is no longer just about temperature, it’s attacking our health. Rising heat is bringing more diseases, breathing problems, and heart issues. Yet, the money to treat these impacts is almost missing.
The study, titled “The Nexus of Adaptation and Health Finance,” reveals that climate change could cause 15.6 million deaths by 2050. But only 0.5% of global climate finance, just $173 million since 2004, has gone to the health sector. That’s only 2% of all adaptation funding worldwide.
Climate Crisis Reaches Our Bodies
The report says the world’s most vulnerable nations, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, are already facing deadly heatwaves, new infections, and collapsing health systems.
“The climate crisis now poses a direct threat to our health,” said co-author Mathilde Wilkens. “We must see climate finance as health finance. Strong health systems can’t exist without climate-linked funding.”
Adelphi reviewed 67 National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and their health components. It found that 87% of them include health goals, and 39% have separate health budgets. But only 0.1% of the $2.54 billion these countries need has been funded.
Nations like Nepal and Bangladesh have prepared solid plans for climate-ready hospitals and clinics. Yet progress is stalled because of missing funds.
“For countries like ours, the climate crisis brings new diseases, heat stress, mental health problems, and ruined lives,” said M.D. Shamsuddoha from Bangladesh’s Center for Participatory Research and Development. “If global health investment doesn’t rise, our plans will stay on paper.”
Vulnerable Areas Left Behind
The report shows half of all climate health funding went to Least Developed Countries. But only 4% reached conflict zones, where health systems are weakest.
Even more striking, not a single South Asian country has received funding for a dedicated health adaptation project, despite the region facing 18% of future climate-linked health risks.
The findings come ahead of COP30, set to begin next week in Belém, Brazil. The summit is being called the “Adaptation COP,” and Brazil plans to launch the Belém Health Action Plan, a roadmap to connect climate and health priorities.
Adelphi’s report urges five actions:
- Align health and climate funding goals.
- Improve access to international finance.
- Offer grants instead of loans.
- Strengthen cooperation across sectors.
- Set clear global targets for adaptation.
The message is clear, climate finance must become health finance. Without it, hospitals may stand, but care will fail.
COP30 is no longer just about saving the planet’s ecosystems. It’s about saving people’s lives, and deciding whether the world will protect both the earth and the health of its people.
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