Washington, D.C., United States – Somalia’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Lieutenant General Bashir Mohamed Jama, continued his global outreach on climate diplomacy this week with a high-level meeting in Washington, D.C., where he held talks with World Bank Vice President Dr. Juergen Voegele on strengthening cooperation in climate adaptation, drought resilience and environmental protection.

The meeting, held on October 14, came at a pivotal moment for Somalia, which is emerging from one of the worst drought cycles in its recent history while simultaneously facing the growing threats of floods, land degradation and rising temperatures.

Lt. Gen. Jama outlined the government’s priorities for scaling up early warning systems, land restoration programmes and community-led resilience projects — areas where he said World Bank support has already been instrumental but must now expand to meet the scale of the crisis.

Dr. Voegele welcomed Somalia’s proactive stance, applauding the country’s recent submission of its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), which commits to ambitious emissions reductions and climate adaptation targets despite limited resources.

He described Somalia’s efforts as “a model of climate leadership under adversity,” and reaffirmed the Bank’s readiness to deepen collaboration across key sectors such as water management, renewable energy and climate finance.

According to officials familiar with the talks, both parties explored new avenues for mobilizing concessional funding and accelerating the rollout of community-focused resilience programmes, particularly in rural and pastoralist regions hardest hit by climate shocks. They also discussed integrating climate adaptation more deeply into national development planning.

Speaking after the meeting, Lt. Gen. Jama said Somalia was “not seeking sympathy but partnership,” emphasizing that investing in resilience now would save lives and reduce long-term humanitarian costs.

“Our people have shown extraordinary resilience,” he said. “What they need is sustained support to turn survival into sustainability.”

The meeting marks another step in Somalia’s growing engagement with international climate institutions ahead of global summits later this year, where Mogadishu is expected to push for greater recognition of climate-vulnerable states on the frontlines of a crisis they did little to cause.

For Somalia, the message is clear: the window for adaptation is narrowing, and global solidarity must move beyond pledges to action.