Scale up climate crisis finance commitments: Sitharaman to advanced economies

The minister was speaking at the concluding session of the International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday called on advanced economies to honour their climate change financing commitments, saying that their obligation to mobilise 100 billion dollars a year to fulfil the needs of developing countries is “meager” and remained largely “unfulfilled”.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman participated in a virtual session organized by the Coalition of Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) in New Delhi. (ANI Photo)

The minister was speaking at the concluding session of the International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure when she said: “Multilateral negotiations and multilateral institutions have played a critical role in climate change finance-related matters. The Paris Agreement also recognizes the pivotal role that finance plays in being conscious about the resilient nature of infrastructure we need to build.”

She added: “I think the resources being given to developing countries is something on which discussion has happened. For developed countries, it underlines their continued obligation under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). These commitments will have to be honoured.”

The minister further said: “The much discussed commitment of 100 billion dollars a year is something which advanced economies will have to recognise. According to observers and also people who watch developing countries struggle to keep their commitments on the Paris Agreement, finance is an issue, 100 billion a year is a meagre amount. The commitment is meagre and needs to be ramped up. This 100 billion dollar a year commitment is not even close to being fulfilled.”