KEY POINTS
- South Africa will call for an annual $13 trillion global climate finance commitment at COP29, set to take place in November.
- The country seeks to emphasize equitable funding and long-term support for climate resilience and green infrastructure in developing nations.
- The proposal reflects South Africa’s push for substantial climate action aligned with the needs of vulnerable economies.
South Africa is expected to call for an annual climate finance mobilization of $13 trillion at the COP29 meeting to be held in Dubai. The proposal also focuses on the need to have continuous and fair funding from the developed countries for the climate interventions of the vulnerable economies. The objective is to achieve a long-term partnership that will support countries most vulnerable to climate change effects, to help them adapt and transition to sustainable infrastructure.
Promoting climate finance for developing countries
South Africa’s demand for $13 trillion commitment is indicative of a gradual realization of the funding deficit that hampers climate change interventions in the developing world. The current funding levels are inadequate to address increasing climate risks as they should. South African officials have claimed that increased funding is required for such important sectors as renewable energy, climate change mitigation, and sustainable agriculture.
As reported by Engineering News, South Africa’s position at COP29 will be based on the country’s desire for a new fairer structure of the international financial system that would take into account climate differences between developed and developing countries.
The country appeal also underlines the importance of affordable sources of funding that would guarantee the availability of the funds to the target communities and sectors most at risk of climate change.
Climate summit and its function in financing the energy transition
The call for higher climate finance is one of the key issues on the COP29 negotiating table for many developing countries as these countries seek to achieve their climate targets and development objectives. For South Africa, mobilization of $13 trillion of global funding would be beneficial to fund projects that are important in the fight against climate change, green infrastructure, and disaster risk reduction.
The initiative is in line with the Paris Agreement that seeks to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, which will require a massive scale up of climate finance.
The outcome of the South African proposal may therefore depend on the backing of other developing nations and the ability of the developed countries to provide long term funding. Climate finance has always been a major issue of debate at international conferences, especially when developing countries have demanded more funding from developed countries that are most culpable for excessive emissions of greenhouse gases in the past.
Policy implications for global climate change
If successful, South Africa’s proposal could alter the climate finance regime, and create a fairer funding model. The increase to $13 trillion in annual financing would be a major change in climate policy, focusing on adaptation in countries most vulnerable to climate change.
For South Africa and similar economies, such a commitment would help to mobilize the necessary resources to advance their energy transitions, eradicate poverty, and achieve sustainable development in the context of climate change. With COP29 looming, South Africa’s advocacy is premised on the need for financial reforms that reflect the climate reality of the country and the developing world in the hope that the world will agree on fair funding for climate action
