Instead of aiding poor countries in reducing carbon emissions, rich nations are short-changing them Observers warn that neglecting climate finance may hinder action in developing countries, especially in South Asia. Hemanshi Kamani/Reuters Eleven years after developed countries committed to delivering $100 billion a year to help poor nations deal with climate change, they have fallen short of the target both in terms of quantity and, more importantly, quality of the finance earmarked for climate action. This shortfall, experts say, will disproportionately affect South Asia, a region prone to natural disasters and deeply dependent on carbon-intensive energy and so needing significant support to tackle both vulnerabilities in unison.