The nation spends about 30 percent of domestic resources on adaptation and transition, she says. This includes building desalination plants for freshwater, installing artificial reefs, and a push to power the nation with solar energy.
While its contribution to global emissions is a mere 0.003 percent, the archipelago is among the most vulnerable countries to climate change and global warming. Scientists say 80 percent of the nation could be uninhabitable by 2050 due to rising sea levels. Most of Maldives' 1,200 islands are just about 1m above the sea level.
Maldives – along with other Small Island Developing States (SIDS) – have repeatedly tried to secure funds from big emitters to help deal with the impact of climate change. “We have been talking about this since the first COP (Conference of the Parties) summit," she said.
Even when funding is approved, the process is tedious and the money could take years to materialise, said Minister Shauna, giving an example of two projects from Maldives under the Green Climate Fund (GCF).
This has forced the nation to take matters into its own hands and inject funds from its domestic revenue and budget to invest in green transition and adaptation. These include controversial projects like land reclamation and a floating city.
