Funding climate actions

At a summit, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said, “The climate emergency is a race we are losing, but it is a race we can win.” He added, “Financial actors are here to scale-up action and deploy resources in fundamentally new and meaningful ways. Coalitions are here with partnerships and initiatives to move us closer to a resilient, carbon-neutral world by 2050.”

In the face of worsening climate crisis, across the world, organizations/groups have taken up the responsibility of funding climate actions. In general, climate finance refers to local, national or transnational financing, drawn from public, private and alternative sources, for actions that will address climate change. The Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement call for financial assistance from parties with more financial resources to those that are less endowed and more vulnerable.

Taking Lead

The Asset Owner Alliance — A group of the world’s largest pension funds and insurers, responsible for directing more than US$2 trillion in investments, is committed to transitioning to carbon-neutral investment portfolios by 2050. The members of the Alliance engage with companies in which they are investing to ensure they decarbonize their business models.

The International Development Finance Club (IDFC) — A group of 24 national and regional development banks from all over the world, with a majority active in emerging and developing countries – is to announce a quantitative target of mobilizing US$1 trillion by 2025. In addition, IDFC will launch a partnership with the Green Climate Fund to promote direct access to international climate finance.

Assistance for the Least Developed Countries (LDCs)

• The Climate Investment Platform will seek to directly mobilize US$1 trillion in clean energy investment by 2025 in 20 least developed countries. The platform will provide a menu of services to governments and private sector clients in their efforts to scale-up energy transition and accelerate investments for low carbon, climate-resilient development. It will also enable the delivery of ambitious NDCs.

• The LIFE-AR initiative, led by least developed countries, will strengthen South-South cooperation, aim to mobilize US$30-40 million, and deliver pathways to climate-resilient development by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050.

(Sources-Climate Action Summit)