Innovative financing solutions and levies on fossil fuel producers including shipping and aviation industries should be introduced to spur climate financing, according to UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
Addressing COP29 in Baku, Guterres said the multinational climate meeting must “tear down the walls of climate finance” and proposed levies on a “polluter must pay” basis and in the context that “big sums require big change”.
Presently developing countries face many obstacles including the rising cost of capital and debt servicing which soaks up funds.
Developing countries would need about $1.1trn in climate finance from 2025, rising to $1.8trn by 2030, according to the UN global policy model.
“This results in adaptation denied and tale of two transitions,” he added. “The world must pay up or humanity will pay the price. Climate finance is not charity, it’s an investment. A deal is a must and I’m confident it will be reached,” he said.
Warning that the most vulnerable are being abandoned to climate extremes, and reiterating “the clock is ticking”, he said industry and government must work harder to reduce carbon emissions.
A key priority is cutting emergency emissions reductions by 9% every year, and the goal should be a 43% drop by 2030 by 2019 levels.
“Unfortunately they are still growing at the present moment,” he said.
Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Mayor of Kuala Lumpur, said climate change “is very real” after the Malaysian capital endured unprecedented heatwaves and storms. “Kuala Lumpur, like many cities, is facing ever greater challenges on a a daily basis,” she said.
She advocated more nature-based solutions and turning urban centres into ‘biodiver-sities’ and highlighted challenges with rising plastic pollution and microplastics.
