CERF Annual Results Report 2025: Report on 2025 CERF-funded Climate Action

Letter from the Emergency Relief Coordinator — Report on 2025 CERF-funded Climate Action

Around the world, the climate crisis is increasingly a humanitarian crisis—hitting hardest those who have done least to cause it.

In 2025, storms, floods and droughts once again devastated some of the world’s most vulnerable communities. Hurricane Melissa tore through the Caribbean as one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the region, killing dozens and leaving widespread destruction across Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba—just a year after Hurricane Beryl, compounding the hardship for communities still recovering. Severe droughts in Somalia and Afghanistan destroyed harvests, while floods in Nigeria, Pakistan and Venezuela overwhelmed already fragile systems.

For families caught up in these crises, these are not isolated shocks. They are blow after blow after blow.

There is no humanitarian solution to climate change.

That requires urgent global action—to cut emissions, accelerate adaptation, and address loss and damage. But humanitarian action can help people survive today’s crises and prepare for tomorrow’s.

CERF—the Central Emergency Response Fund—is doing exactly that. In 2025, it allocated $98 million to climate-related emergencies, reaching more than 5.5 million people across 16 countries affected by droughts, floods and storms.

CERF is also expanding anticipatory action—releasing funding based on forecasts and early warnings before disasters strike. In the Philippines, funding was released within minutes of storm thresholds being reached, enabling life-saving support to reach communities ahead of landfall. Similar action helped reduce the impact of drought in Guatemala and Afghanistan, and flooding in Nigeria.

This is humanitarian action at its best: faster, smarter, and more cost-effective.

At the same time, the CERF Climate Action Account is closing a critical gap in fragile and conflict-affected settings that often struggle to access climate finance. In 2025, it allocated $9.5 million across eight countries—supporting life-saving action today while helping communities withstand future shocks.

To all those who support CERF and the Climate Action Account: thank you.

We know what works. With sustained and predictable support, we can act earlier, reach more people, and ensure that the most vulnerable are not left behind.

Tom Fletcher

Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs
and Emergency Relief Coordinator