BAKU, (Reuters) – COP29 negotiators welcomed a pledge by major development banks to lift funding to poor and middle-income countries struggling with global warming as an early boost to the two-week summit.
A group of lenders, including the World Bank, announced on Tuesday a joint goal of increasing this finance to $120 billion by 2030, a roughly 60% increase on the amount in 2023.
“I think it’s a very good sign,” Irish Climate Minister Eamon Ryan told Reuters on Wednesday.
“It’s very helpful. But that on its own won’t be enough”, Ryan said, adding countries and companies must also contribute.
China’s Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang said on Tuesday that Beijing has already mobilized around $24.5 billion to help developing countries address climate change.
Ryan’s view was echoed by Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation who welcomed the announcement as “a shot in the arm for the climate finance discussion”
“But there is so much more work ahead,” he added.
The chief aim of the conference in Azerbaijan is to secure a wide-ranging international climate financing agreement that ensures up to trillions of dollars for climate projects.
Developing countries are hoping for big commitments from rich, industrialized nations that are the biggest historical contributors to global warming, and some of which are also huge producers of fossil fuels.
