Yesterday in Berlin, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) “Pledging Conference” concluded with USD 9.3 billion being pledged in support of climate action in developing countries. The table below shows the countries that we know have pledged, including today’s (21/11/2014) pledge from Canada bringing the overall total to USD 9.438 billion.
Having received the minimum amount of pledging necessary to become monetarily operationalised, the fund can now get down to its real work of supporting developing countries around the world in making the transition towards low-carbon sustainable societies, whilst adapting to the growing impacts of climate change.
New pledges were made by several EU Member States, including the UK, Sweden and Italy. This has left those developed countries that did not pledge, such as Australia, China, and Russia increasingly isolated on the world stage.
|
Country |
$ USD |
Notes |
Original currency (OC) – if pledge made in OC |
|
United States of America |
3000 m |
Maximum 30% of total pledged |
|
|
Japan |
1500 m |
Subject to National Diet approval |
|
|
United Kingdom |
1126 m |
Entirely from Overseas Development Aid (ODA) money |
£720 m |
|
France |
1035 m |
€225 million as loans, €55 million as capital cushion |
|
|
Germany |
940 m |
Grant |
€750 m |
|
Sweden |
580 m |
Grant, subject to Parliamentary approval |
4000 m (SEK) |
|
Italy |
313 m |
Grant |
€250 m |
|
Canada |
265 m |
||
|
The Netherlands |
134.8 m |
Grant. Given, over four years. |
|
|
Norway |
130 m |
Grant. Is in addition to previously pledged climate finance funds. |
|
|
Finland |
100 m |
Grant. Subject to Parliamentary approval. |
€80 m |
|
South Korea |
100 m |
Grant until 2018. |
|
|
Switzerland |
100 m |
In 3 installments between 2015-2017. |
|
|
Denmark |
71.6 m |
Grant |
|
|
Spain |
16.3 m |
€13 million cash grant, multi-annual grant to follow. |
|
|
Mexico |
10 m |
||
|
Luxembourg |
6.3 m |
€5 million |
|
|
Czech Republic |
5.5 m |
||
|
New Zealand |
3 m |
||
|
Panama |
1 m |
||
|
Monaco |
312,000 thd |
||
|
Indonesia |
300, 00 thd |
||
|
Mongolia |
50,000 thd |
||
|
Poland |
Will announce by the end of the year. |
The GCF must ensure that funds are allocated strategically, and diverted to truly sustainable projects that do no harm. This would in turn provide predictability for developing countries, and additionally act as a clear signal of how developed countries intend to actually scale-up contributions after the initial contribution phase.
To encourage more pledges, countries can decide to include financial support for climate action as part of their national contributions towards the new international agreement due in Paris at the end of next year.
What is more, climate finance funds as a whole need to keep growing if developed countries are to achieve the goal they set themselves of mobilising USD100 billion per year, by 2020. To reach this target will require some innovative thinking, new sources of money, and a plan to scale up existing sources.
