COP26: Basic nations underline climate finance goal for developed countries
The bloc of four countries called ‘Basic’ – comprising Brazil, South Africa, India and China – is seeking a fresh long-term climate finance goal at the ongoing UN-led COP26 summit on climate change in Glasgow, Scotland.
In a statement presented by India’s environment minister, Bhupender Yadav, on behalf of the Basic countries during the opening of the COP26, said the bloc highlighted a road map for the delivery of the promised $100 billion climate finance support for developing countries, and a carbon market mechanism that facilitates private sector engagement in the fight against climate change.
The Basic grouping also said its views were aligned with the position taken by the western African country of Guinea on behalf of the G77 group of developing nations and China.
“Delivered the Basic statement at the opening plenary of #COP26, underlining that developed nations have not only failed to meet the $100 billion goal per year of support to developing nations since 2009, but also continue to present it as a ceiling of their ambition all the way to 2025,” Bhupender Yadav tweeted on Monday.
“On the long-term temperature goal, the latest available science makes it clear that all parties need to immediately contribute their fair share,” the Basic statement said. “Achieving it will require developed countries to rapidly reduce their emissions and dramatically scale up their financial support to developing countries. Unfortunately, we have not made much progress on these issues. It is particularly disturbing.”
The Basic nations said in the statement they are expecting a clear roadmap from developed countries on their existing obligations to mobilise $100 billion per year from 2021 to 2025… and the willingness to urgently initiate the process within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of setting a new collective quantified goal on finance.
The Basic bloc also said it is expecting a market mechanism that facilitates private sector engagement in carbon markets in the larger fight against climate change.
“Decisions particularly on climate finance and Article 6 (which pertains to cutting emissions) can significantly help enhance climate ambition,” the Basic statement said.
In 2009, at the COP15 in Copenhagen, Denmark, developed nations committed to a goal of mobilising $100 billion a year by 2020 to address the needs of developing countries.
A finance delivery plan jointly led by Canada and Germany said developed countries will likely be able to mobilise $100 billion funding only in 2023 – with a delay of three years.
Experts, meanwhile, have said it’s already time to increase the promised $100 billion climate finance. According to the UNFCCC’s standing committee on finance, developing countries need almost $6 trillion up to 2030 to implement their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.