That was the strong message from the President of the western Pacific country of Palau, Surangel Whipps, who spoke during an interactive dialogue on Wednesday during the Fourth International Conference on SIDS (SIDS4)which takes place this week on the twin islands of Antigua and Barbuda in the Caribbean.
He told deputies that there was a “Transition from Rhetoric to Decisive Action.”
But representatives of two European countries committed to climate finance said just hours earlier news from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) confirmed that by 2022, a total of $115.9 billion had been raised for climate action in developing countries, showed that significant progress is being made.
In 2009, COP15 set the goal of mobilizing $100 billion per year for climate action in developing countries by 2020.
UN photo/Eskinder Debebe
President Surangel S. Whipps of Palau addresses the interactive dialogue on making climate finance work during the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States.
Building on Dubai
Today’s session aimed to build on the commitments made in Dubai, which established the crucial Loss and Damage Fund to help SIDS and other vulnerable countries offset the impacts of extreme weather, rising sea levels and coastal erosion.
President Whipps said increasing support for SIDS was not only vital to their survival “but also essential to solving the world’s climate problems.”
He added that “we need robust and responsible international climate finance mechanisms that deliver real results.”
UN photo/Eskinder Debebe
Jennifer Morgan, Germany’s Special Envoy for Climate Action, addresses the interactive dialogue on making climate finance work at the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States.
Keep listening
Jennifer Morgan, Germany’s special envoy for climate action, agreed that the world must build on COP28 commitments, including a just and fair transition away from fossil fuels and financing resilience and adaptation.
Currently, 90 percent of all green investments go to developed countries and China.
She called the OECD announcement a breakthrough and said SIDS could make “a truly unique contribution” to the COP28 pledge to phase out deforestation by 2030.
Looking ahead to the COP29 taking place in Baku in November, she said “We will have to listen to each other more than ever” to find solutions that can secure climate action at scale.
UN photo/Eskinder Debebe
Naadir Hassan, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Trade of Seychelles, addresses the interactive dialogue on making climate finance work at the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States.
Naadir Hassan, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Trade of Seychelles, said COP28 had been “an important step forward” for SIDS, but he echoed Mr Whipps and said rhetoric versus action on the ground was key.
There is no time to lose, he said, citing the fact that the Seychelles’ coastal infrastructure is already “falling into the sea.”
“This year I will be attending my fourth COP and we have been discussing these issues since I have been minister for the past three years. but we have not yet seen a single dollar enter our countries when it comes to actually financing climate adaptation measures.”
This is where the lack of action is glaring, he added, despite the promise of $85 billion in the Loss and Damage Fund, and a $12.8 billion top-up for the Green Climate Fund – with another 188 million dollars for it Adjustment Fund.
We need to see this money materialize in SIDS economies “in a very urgent way,” he told delegates, estimating the cost of adaptation and mitigation in his island nation at $600 million over the next decade and warning that the next ten years of climate change: “We really need to go faster.”
UN News/Matt Wells
A view of Jolly Beach in Antigua and Barbuda, the host of the fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4).
He lamented that because many SIDS fall into the middle-income category, they were “completely cut off” from concessional financing reserved for the poorest.
“We need to change the entire global financial architecture in a way that can truly move SIDS forward and adapt to the new global environment.”
Tomas Anker Christensen, Denmark’s special envoy for climate, provided further reassurance from a major financier’s perspective when he said Wednesday’s OECD report was a major success for climate finance.
He said that even if countries like Seychelles had not seen funds reaching them directly from countries like his, their support for climate initiatives from the Green Environment Fund, the World Bank and others is significant.
Denmark pledged to donate to the Loss and Damage Fund and has worked hard to launch it, he added. He noted that it had taken seven to eight years for the Green Climate Fund to become operational, while the Loss and Damage Fund would be operational in just two years. .
UN photo/Eskinder Debebe
Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), addresses the interactive dialogue on making climate finance work at the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States.
Climate objectives aligned
The Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Simon Stiell pushed back on the charge that there was too much rhetoric and not enough action.
He emphasized that it was important to be on the same page: “There is an alignment in terms of language and we have made great progress in the process In recent years.”
“Where we are falling short is in building momentum for action,” he added Global inventory At COP28 it was agreed to take stock of progress on climate action. Not enough progress has been made “but it has given us a roadmap on how we move forward in the period ahead.”
Mr Stiell said it was clear that the upcoming COPs in Baku, Azerbaijan and Belém, Brazil, will be the real test of “whether we move from words to action.”
He also welcomed the OECD figures released on Wednesday and said there is now an opportunity to think about what the transition to renewable energy really means for SIDS.
He said it comes down to “economic transformation. Eliminating dependence on fossil fuels, foreign exchange leakage, high energy costs that affect competitiveness, living costs and disposable income – this is absolutely crucial for your regional development.”
Mr. Stiell further stated that the next two years will determine “whether we move from words to action.”
He added that the UNFCCC would assist all SIDS in their efforts to increase climate finance “in achieving the greatest possible result in COPS29 and 30.”
UN and Global Environment Facility launch new $135 million fund
As a further boost to financing measures to tackle climate change, the UN Development Program (UNDP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) launched a new $135 million Integrated Blue and Green Islands Program (BGI-IP).
The initiative aims to highlight the crucial role of nature and expand nature-based solutions to combat environmental degradation in three key sectors: urban development, food production and tourism.
The initiative focuses on fifteen SIDS, to promote nature-positive changes. Managed by UNDP and funded by GEF and partners, it represents a new wave of support for SIDS as they enter the Decade of Action from 2024 to 2034.
“SIDS are on the front lines of climate change and nature loss, as they face the harsh realities of sea level rise, more unpredictable weather patterns and degraded ecosystems. solutions,” said Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator.