Fiji, Oct. 5 -- Australia has been urged to use its role as President of Negotiations at Pre-COP31 to push wealthy countries to close the shortfall in international climate finance and make major polluters contribute more to climate action.

The call has come from the Make Big Polluters Pay Alliance as Pre-COP31 gets underway in Fiji.

The alliance said climate-vulnerable countries were facing billions of dollars in losses from climate disasters despite international climate funds established under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change remaining underfunded.

It cited estimates that Pacific countries have faced average annual climate disaster costs of AUD$1.3 billion(US$900 million) over the past decade, equivalent to 14.3 percent...