Experts call for Global South push on new climate finance goal
They emphasise that the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) should agree on mobilising trillions, in line with the real needs of developing nations.
Climate experts from various specialisations, including government officials, are calling for a collective push from the Global South on an ambitious new climate finance goal ahead of the UN Climate Meeting (COP29) scheduled to be held in Baku.
They emphasise that the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) should agree on mobilising trillions, in line with the real needs of developing nations.
According to an Independent High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance, annual investments need to increase by USD 2.4 trillion annually (for developing countries excluding China) by 2030.
Experts warn that past experience with developed countries delaying delivery on the USD 100 billion goal raises concerns that the new finance goal, to be set from the floor of $100 billion for the post-2025 period, may not be ambitious enough to help developing countries transition to a low-carbon future.
The Bonn climate talks in June, expected to define the contours of discussion at COP29, ended in stalemate following severe disagreements between rich and developing countries. Rich nations, or ANNEX 1 countries, pushed to expand the number of donors to climate finance by including emerging economies such as China, India and Middle Eastern countries, while limiting beneficiaries to least developed countries and island states.
In a closed-door discussion on Friday among government officials, economists, climate scientists, former diplomats and activists, it emerged that a strong pushback was needed from the Southern countries. The meeting followed Chatham House rules, hence speakers are not identified.
{{/usCountry}}In a closed-door discussion on Friday among government officials, economists, climate scientists, former diplomats and activists, it emerged that a strong pushback was needed from the Southern countries. The meeting followed Chatham House rules, hence speakers are not identified.
{{/usCountry}}Those working on India’s stance stressed that “mainstreaming climate action from a development perspective” is critical for India. They noted that in the past, finance flows from developed countries have been abysmally low, despite the “polluter pays” principle being clearly embedded in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
{{/usCountry}}Those working on India’s stance stressed that “mainstreaming climate action from a development perspective” is critical for India. They noted that in the past, finance flows from developed countries have been abysmally low, despite the “polluter pays” principle being clearly embedded in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
{{/usCountry}}One attendee stated, “Despite our best efforts, we do not have a multilaterally agreed definition of climate finance. We do not see much progress on this and so we expect a discussion on the definition at COP29.”
{{/usCountry}}One attendee stated, “Despite our best efforts, we do not have a multilaterally agreed definition of climate finance. We do not see much progress on this and so we expect a discussion on the definition at COP29.”
{{/usCountry}}“We need a bottom-up approach to quality and quantity of finance. It cannot be just public finance. We need new and additional climate-specific finance,” they added.
India’s submission to the UNFCCC in February stated that the NCQG should align with the needs of developing countries, and developed countries should provide at least $1 trillion per year, primarily in grants and concessional finance.
A climate scientist involved in preparing India’s stand in climate negotiations highlighted that the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report shows that the whole of South Asia contributed to less than 4% of greenhouse gas emissions despite having nearly 24% of the global population. “Can the Global South do more? That’s a preposterous question. Developing countries are diverting their scarce domestic resources to meet climate commitments when their contribution is minimal,” they said.
A climate and meteorological scientist at the meeting pointed out that climate change impacts have accelerated in recent years, especially over the tropical region. In India, this is evident in the pattern of rainfall, with heavy to extremely heavy rain events (15 to 20 cm per day) increasing and the number of dry days also rising.
Some policy experts and diplomats cautioned that negotiations during the climate conference may pose significant challenges as the Global North dominates and manages to counter expectations on transfer of finance. One expert questioned, “We had initially pushed for USD 400 billion in the pre-2025 period, but it ended up becoming USD 100 billion, which also was not delivered on time. Now we have a Loss and Damage fund with USD 700 million in pledges. How can more funds be mobilised and delivered for the most vulnerable?”
Another scientist flagged that the scenarios considered by IPCC are inequitable and will perpetuate inequity in the future, with projections indicating per capita energy consumption hardly changing in 2050 because the carbon budget has already been depleted by the developed world.