Report: Businesses in Emerging Economies Impacted by Climate Emergency

Eromosele Abiodun

A survey by British International Investment (BII) revealed the extent of the impact already being felt in countries most vulnerable to the climate emergency.

The report revealed that nearly four out of every five businesses in many of the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of the climate emergency are already suffering the consequences of a rapidly changing environment. 

The startling finding is the third annual Emerging Economies Climate Report – a survey of BII investee businesses in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean.  

British International Investment is the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor.

The report was launched in partnership with the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment and ODI, the global think tank.

The report revealed that 79 per cent of companies surveyed said that climate change was already impacting their business, up from 68 per cent in 2022. 

It also found that 72 per cent of corporates surveyed had experienced an extreme weather event in the last five years with droughts, floods and heat cited as the greatest cause for concern. 

Survey responses varied across sectors and business types; financial services or fund managers cited fewer climate impacts, while corporates – particularly agricultural businesses – are facing more significant impacts. 

While 86 percent of corporates said they are being impacted by physical and transition risks today, 68 per cent of financial services firms said the same. 

Despite many respondents highlighting that acting on climate can be cost-saving and add long-term business value, they also noted they did not have the knowledge and resources to respond to climate risks and opportunities. Respondents to the survey said they would benefit from more technical training on how to respond to the climate emergency as well as targeted investment and policy and regulatory action.

Commenting on the report, Managing Director and Head of Climate, Diversity and Advisory, at BII, Amal-Lee Amin, said: “Businesses and entrepreneurs across the emerging economy markets in which we operate are on the front lines of the climate emergency. Their businesses are already feeling the significant impacts of the climate emergency. 

“As long-term investors in climate finance, it is the role of BII and others to equip these businesses with the capital and expertise to play a key role in the fight against the climate emergency and to safeguard their long-term viability.”

Professor in Practice – Sustainable Finance at the Grantham Institute, Nick Robins, added: “This report shows the overwhelming demand among firms in emerging economies for targeted investment to enable them to respond to the climate crisis. For business and investors in the Global South, there is now a strategic imperative to scale up capital flows in ways that bring a just transition for workers and communities, shaping the transition so it boosts quality jobs and gender equality.”