Where's the money to fight climate change? : International

By Joydeep Gupta

Bali, Dec 9 - The Group-77 and China have expressed deep concern over a huge funding gap to address the global warming, and have sought a review of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) financial mechanism, a move that is being strongly opposed by the US, Japan and the European Union.

The UNFCCC has estimated that it will take at least $40 billion a year to address the global warming and noted that the international financing available for the purpose last year totalled only $36 million.

As the Dec 3-14 UN conference on climate change took its Sunday break here, squabbling over this basic issue continued in the various resort hotels around the conference venue where most of the delegates from 187 countries attending the conference are staying.

Speaking on behalf of the G-77 and China, the group's current co-chair Pakistan has bluntly stated that unless this funding gap was bridged, the objectives of the UN convention - to mitigate the emission of greenhouse gases that are leading to climate change and to adapt to the change that is already here - cannot be met.

The $36 million that was available in 2006 came from a two percent levy on clean development mechanism (CDM) projects. Even under the most optimistic carbon-trading scenario painted by UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer, this levy cannot generate more than $5 billion in 2030.

That is why the G-77 and China want the financial mechanism as well as transfer of green technology to be reviewed through a formal process that is time-bound and can be monitored.

'But the US, Japan and EU are stalling discussion on this by repeatedly stating that any talks should take place within the UNFCCC's subsidiary body on scientific and technology advice - which does not deal with implementing any decision - rather than within the subsidiary body on implementation,' according to Ilana Solomon of the international NGO ActionAid.

'The rich countries are also saying that these issues should be taken up under the review of the Kyoto Protocol's Article 9, which is yet to begin,' she added, condemning the position taken by the industrialised countries.

The G-77 is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but has since expanded to 130 member countries.

The UNFCCC agrees with the G-77 position that current funding is clearly insufficient to address the climate change, especially after 2012, when the ongoing Kyoto Protocol for this purpose comes to end.

But de Boer feels that international aid cannot possibly bridge this gap, and the money must come by moving private investments towards green technologies in a big way.

Finding ways to bridge this financial gap is a major item on the agenda of trade ministers meeting here this week and finance ministers who will meet here Monday and Tuesday.