(Left) President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and (Center) Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. LRay Villafuerte (Villafuerte’s Facebook page)

Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. LRay Villafuerte said the selection of the Philippines to host the Loss and Damage Fund (LDF) Board will bolster the status of President Marcos as a champion for the world’s climate-vulnerable economies.

In a statement on Sunday, July 18, Villafuerte said hosting the LDF Board will help expand the Marcos administration’s access to annual financing that the world’s most industrialized and richest nations have long committed for.

This financing is committed to climate-proofing LDCs (least developed countries) like the Philippines, along with SIDS (small island developing states), that have long face the brunt of the catastrophic impact of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions heating up the Earth’s surface.

“More importantly, Manila’s selection as host of the LDF Board…has propped up Mr. Marcos’ position as champion or spokesman of the most vulnerable economies long seeking climate justice, in the form of damage compensation from the world’s most affluent industrialized states that have become richer as the heaviest polluters of the environment,” said Villafuerte.

The National Unity Party (NUP) president pointed out that this will give Marcos a “more emphatic voice” to push for climate justice and ample financing for economies most affected by climate change.

The Philippines was able to secure a seat on the LDF Board after the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) last year.

Last July 9, the country was selected to be global fund’s host after beating other nations that have expressed interest, which include Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Eswatini, Kenya, and Togo.

Rich countries responsible for most of the world’s GHG emissions have so far pledged over $700 million to the LDF.

As host, the Philippines will oversee the LDF Board in operationalizing access modalities, allocation parameters, and resource mobilization strategies to vulnerable countries

Villafuerte noted that the country’s selection as host was “certainly a sensible decision” as President Marcos had long been a consistent advocate for climate justice.

He said during the president’s trips abroad, Marcos has continuously called for assistance from first-world nations to help high-risk countries adjust from the onset of climate change.

“The Philippines is one of the countries, if not the No. 1 country, that has so far suffered the most, in terms of economic and infrastructure losses, from typhoons and other natural calamities that have become nastier by the year as a result of climate change,” the lawmaker added.

According to the Climate Change Commission (CCC), the country has projected losses worth P637 billion over the past 10 years from the impact of climate change.

Villafuerte emphasized that climate change is one of the factors behind the country’s slow economic growth.

In addition, he said the Marcos administration has always pursued concrete steps on decarbonization despite budgetary constraints.

“The government has prioritized hydrothermal, geothermal, solar power, wind power as well as other low-emission energy development  projects, to meet its target for increasing the share of renewables in  our country’s power generation mix from the current  22 percent to  35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040,” he shared.