Agriculture, Forest and Environment Minister Gita Chaudhary and Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle met in Kathmandu on November 2, 2026, to discuss mobilising climate finance for Nepal and preparing for the upcoming UN climate change conference, COP31. Their talks covered access to international funding, the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund, as well as carbon finance and ways to improve climate adaptation and loss and damage programmes.
Climate finance and access to international funds
The meeting focused on how Nepal can expand its access to international climate finance. The ministers discussed the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund, two of the funding mechanisms included in their talks. The agenda also covered carbon finance, placing several sources and forms of climate-related funding within the discussion.
The issues were considered together rather than as isolated topics. Mobilising climate finance concerns the effort to secure resources, while expanding access concerns Nepal’s ability to reach international funding. The reported discussion linked these questions to the country’s work on adaptation and programmes addressing loss and damage. No funding amount, application, new allocation or specific agreement was reported in the available accounts of the meeting.
The conversation also highlighted the importance of making existing climate-related programmes more effective. The ministers discussed improving climate adaptation and loss and damage programmes, indicating that the talks included both the pursuit of finance and how such programmes can be strengthened. The meeting account did not specify particular projects, sectors or implementation measures, so the discussion’s precise operational next steps were not detailed.
Adaptation, loss and damage
Climate adaptation and loss and damage were among the central programme areas raised by the ministers. Their discussion connected these areas with the broader effort to mobilise climate finance and increase Nepal’s access to international support. It did not report a new programme or a change to existing policy, but identified effectiveness as an issue for consideration.
The focus on programme effectiveness adds a practical dimension to the finance agenda. The ministers addressed not only the availability of funding through mechanisms such as the Green Climate Fund and Adaptation Fund, but also the effectiveness of adaptation and loss and damage work. The available reports do not describe how effectiveness would be measured, which institutions would be responsible, or what specific actions might follow.
COP31 preparations
Preparations for COP31, the upcoming UN climate change conference, were also part of the meeting. Climate finance, carbon finance, adaptation and loss and damage all featured in the discussion alongside the conference preparations. The reported account did not provide details on Nepal’s negotiating priorities, its delegation or any specific proposals it plans to advance at COP31.
The meeting brought together the ministers responsible for agriculture, forests and the environment, and finance to consider topics spanning climate programmes and funding. Their talks covered ways to mobilise climate finance, Nepal’s access to international funds, and the effectiveness of adaptation and loss and damage programmes. Reports by Gorkhapatra and Nagarik News described the meeting as covering these climate finance issues and COP31 preparations. No specific decisions or financial commitments were reported.
