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INTRODUCTION: ACHIEVING ADEQUATE, AMBITIOUS CLIMATE FINANCE
Mobilising UNDP support for ØáÞâÖéÚěãÖãØÚ
The United Nations Develop- ment Programme is committed to supporting countries while transitioning their energy sys- tems, but this alone will not be enough. We need concerted action from global actors and to take every opportunity possible. Interview with Achim Steiner, administrator, United Nations Development Programme
H ow is the United Nations Devel- opment Programme helping to mobilise the support needed for climate finance? Among United Nations cli- mate conferences, Azerbaijan’s 29th Conference of the Parties to the Frame- work Convention on Climate Change will likely be remembered as a landmark with finance at its core with a new col- lective quantified goal that will unlock critical climate finance for developing countries. This discussion is happening at a time of macroeconomic stress. In high- income countries, there is a tendency to prioritise national interests, often over- looking the fact that averting climate catastrophe is essential to protecting those very interests. In domestic terms, in the wealthier countries we’re seeing encouraging lev- els of investment. However, emerging economies are frequently told they must depend on fossil fuels, even at their peril, by a self-serving financial and industrial world of actors who continue as if there is no consequence to their actions. The banks and investors pouring money into oil, gas and coal today – the compa- nies leading the fossil fuel sector – are abdicating their responsibility in pur- suit of short-term shareholder interests. It would not be surprising to see these companies face legal consequences to hold them accountable, similar to previous cases where firms were prose- cuted for wilfully ignoring or concealing pollution. We face a challenge in overcom- ing the divergent choices between the outdated economy that prioritises short-term gains before the inevitable consequences arise – or shifting financ- ing, regulation and incentives to enable
those transformations. Moreover, delib- erate polarisation is turning people against cleaner energy and e-mobility. Nobody talks about the price we are pay- ing – and will pay for generations to come – if we don’t act today. UNDP is committed to helping coun- tries find their own ways to act. This is not just an issue of national planning and budgeting; it is also a strategy where equity, fairness and trust in institutions are critical. That includes assisting over 120 coun- tries to enhance their climate pledges – or nationally determined contribu- tions – through our Climate Promise initiative. This approach is also prompt- ing them to leverage new sources of finance that can be channelled to vital areas including poverty eradication, job creation and the just energy transition. We hope this work will allow countries to arrive at COP30 in Brazil in 2025 with NDCs that allow at least a remote chance of reaching the 1.5°C target. That’s a precondition for attracting finance, whether it is allocating public invest- ment in energy infrastructure or leveraging significant private capital. Our work to support Integrated National Financing Frameworks – sup- porting 86 countries to examine their resource availability including domes- tic, international, concessional, public and private finance and their strategies for multiplying these resources – is also significant because countries need both public and private capital. There is no way into the future without significant buy-in from financial and capital mar- kets, industry and the corporate sector. The countries that are succeeding have the right mix of regulation and incentives, mobilising support that has proven catalytic and transformative.
THE BANKS AND INVESTORS POURING MONEY ÄÉÏÊÊÄǼμɿ COAL TODAY – THE COMPANIES LEADING THE FOSSIL FUEL SECTOR – ARE ABDICATING THEIR RESPONSIBILITY IN PURSUIT OF SHORT-TERM SHAREHOLDER INTERESTS.
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Financing a Just Transition
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