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Germany commits two billion euros for climate action
At the most recent Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin on the 3rd May, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a pledge of two billion euros to the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The conference is to take place in Bonn on the 5th October, and will be chaired by German Federal Development Minister Svenja Schulze. The Green Climate Fund is one of the largest climate action funds of the world. The creation of the fund was an important objective of the developing countries, which have an equal say in how funds are spent on climate mitigation and adaptation projects in developing countries.
“This commitment is a strong show of Germany’s readiness to take on its responsibility for global climate action,” said Minister Schulze. “For me, this commitment brings with it the expectation that other countries will also contribute according to their abilities. Climate action will only be successful if it is a global effort. Two thirds of all emissions world-wide are today emitted by developing countries and emerging economies. That is why this funding for climate action is money well invested,” she said in Berlin.
The funds announced by the German Chancellor are from the budget of the German Development Ministry and are earmarked for the next four years. In the run-up to the Green Climate Fund’s pledging conference in October other countries will now have to announce their contributions.
The Green Climate Fund is a central instrument for multilateral climate finance. In the first two funding rounds in 2014 and 2019, some 50 countries contributed 18 billion dollars. This enables developing countries to finance climate action projects, adapt to climate change and develop climate-friendly economies. So far, 216 projects have been funded – with roughly half of the funds earmarked for greenhouse gas mitigation and the other half for adaptation measures.
GCF projects beneficial to more than 900 million people
So far, about 900 million people have benefited from GCF projects. Farmers in Tanzania, for instance, have been enabled to increase their yields through improved climate-smart cultivation methods. First steps have been taken in India and Latin America to develop public transport solutions based on electric mobility. Measures financed by the fund have resulted in a total of 2.5 billion tonnes of avoided CO2 emissions – that is more than three times Germany’s annual emissions.
The Green Climate Fund is an important building block of the commitment made by the industrialised countries to mobilise 100 billion US dollars a year for climate action in developing countries – but it is by no means the only one. Other multilateral funds that provide finance for climate projects include the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Climate Investment Fund (CIF). A significant part of Germany’s climate finance goes to projects and programmes that have been agreed bilaterally with 52 partner countries.
(BMZ/wi)
More information:
Link to BMZ information on the Climate Fund
Learn more about the Petersberg Dialogue
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