Developed nations pledge $9.3 billion to global climate fund

VIENNA (AP):

Developed countries pledged $9.3 billion to help poor nations tackle climate change at a conference held in the German city of Bonn on Thursday, authorities said. However, non-governmental groups criticised the outcome, saying the funds fall short of what is needed to tackle climate change.

The pledges will help replenish the South Korea-based Green Climate Fund, established in 2010 as a financing vehicle for developing countries. It’s the largest such fund aimed at providing money to help poorer nations in reducing their emissions, coping with impacts of climate change and boosting their transitions to clean energy.

The pledged money at the conference in Bonn will be used to finance projects in developing and emerging nations between 2024 and 2027. The German government alone pledged 2 billion Euros ($2.1 billion). “The collected sum will likely turn out to be much higher,” the German Foreign Ministry and the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development said in a joint statement.

Three quarters of contributing states increased their pledges, compared to the previous donor conference in 2019, including Germany, Austria and France. Denmark, Ireland and Liechtenstein doubled their pledges.

There was no mention of pledges from the United States. The office of the US climate envoy John Kerry was not immediately available for comment.

In April, President Joe Biden announced $1 billion in new climate finance for developing nations at a White house virtual climate summit.

However, civil society and NGOs criticised the commitments, saying they fall short of what is needed to tackle the impact of climate change on vulnerable communities in developing nations.

“The Green Climate Fund, envisioned as the lifeline for climate action in developing nations, is held back by the indifference of wealthy countries,” said Harjeet Singh, Head of Global Political Strategy of the Climate Action Network International, a global network of over 1900 environmental civil society organisations in over 130 countries.

Sultan Al Jaber, president designate of COP28, told The Associated Press in a statement that “the current level of replenishment is neither ambitious nor adequate to meet the challenge the world faces”.

“We must go further in our support for the most vulnerable, who are adversely impacted by escalating climate impacts,” he said. Representatives from 40 countries attended the conference.