South Africa will ask the climate summit to triple money for adaptation
At COP31 in Türkiye next month, Pretoria will push for a 2035 target and more funding for loss and damage, including a $20m plan to restore flood-hit Kruger.
Johannesburg — South Africa will push for a benchmark to triple adaptation finance by 2035 at the next United Nations climate summit, COP31, the Mail & Guardian reports.
Environment Minister David Maynier set out the country's positions at a national consultation in Johannesburg on Friday. COP31 takes place in Antalya, Türkiye, from 9 to 20 November.
What South Africa will ask for
- A target to triple money for adaptation by 2035, and a way of tracking progress towards it.
- More funding for climate-related loss and damage.
- Finance that is adequate, predictable and easy to reach, including new money for the Green Climate Fund, the Global Environment Facility and the Adaptation Fund.
- Backing for the Global Goal on Adaptation and the Belém–Addis Vision on adaptation agreed at COP30.
- A working Just Transition Mechanism.
It will also oppose new targets for developing countries outside the Paris Agreement's framework and raise concerns about one-sided climate-related trade measures.
The gap
- Countries' current national plans point to warming of about 2.8°C by the end of the century, far above the Paris goal of 1.5°C.
- The Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage has received more than 170 proposals seeking over $1.4 billion, against about $450 million available.
- South Africa has submitted a $20 million proposal to restore Kruger National Park and surrounding landscapes after the floods of January 2026.
At home, the government is drafting legally binding emissions targets for sectors including energy, transport, agriculture and mining. Maesela Kekana, the country's chief negotiator, also spoke at the consultation.
Source: Mail & Guardian, reporting by Sheree Bega, 16 October 2026.
