The clearest example has to do with the most important announcement he has made so far this summit: the creation of a fund to address the losses and damage that the climate crisis is causing in the countries of the global south. This initiative, announced at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit, was officially launched at the start of this year’s meeting. And as soon as it took off, several countries announced their contribution. The Arab Emirates, Germany and Italy, for example, committed to delivering $100 million each. Spain, 20 more. United States, 17. Japan, 10. In total, according to what has been announced to date, there would be at least a dozen countries willing to contribute to this fund. Of course, it is still not clear how or when.
“Right now only the promises have been made, but there is still nothing concrete”
Deute Observatory in Globalization
“Right now only promises have been made, but there is still nothing concrete. Beyond the numbers, it is unclear how and when these funds will be delivered,” he explains. Bruna Canada, from the Observatori del Deute en la Globalització (ODG). According to this expert, who is following the evolution of the negotiations from Dubai, it is still not clear if these promises will be translated into a one-time donation or if, on the contrary, will become an annual plan (as claimed by the victims of climate chaos). It is also unknown if these funds will be delivered. through direct donations either through a loan system (something that, if done, could further indebt the countries of the global south that are victims of natural disasters).
It is still not clear if the funds will be given in a one-time donation, if there will be an annual plan, if they will be direct aid or loans.
How much money is needed?
The other great unknown has to do with the promised sum of money. The victims and damages fund, for example, was created with the objective of raising nearly 100 billion annually for the major victims of the climate crisis. But for the moment, It is not clear how this goal will be achieved. Especially since no country or any other institution is legally obliged to contribute money to this initiative. There is also no clear regulation on who should contribute more and according to what criteria (such as, for example, countries that have historically polluted the most are the ones who should pay the most). The United States, one of the largest emitters in history, He has only promised 17 million dollars to this initiative.
Even if this funding goal is finally achieved, the great victims of climate chaos They claim that the funds would be insufficient to alleviate the impact of this crisis in the most affected territories. According to a United Nations report, nearly $400 billion annually would be needed to address this problem. According to the ‘Loss and damage collaboration’ platform, it would be the double what the five largest oil companies in the world earn in just one year. “While there are countries that need these funds to survive, the big oil companies continue to reap record profits. We are facing a social injustice,” they say from Dubai.
The fund for losses and damages aims to raise 100,000 million annually, but the victims of climate chaos demand 400,000
Where are the funds going?
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At this climate summit too hundreds of millions have been mobilized towards mitigation initiatives (to reduce greenhouse gas emissions), adaptation (to condition cities, crops and other environments to the impact of this crisis) and, in general, on energy transition. In these cases it is also not clear how, when and through what mechanisms these funds will be delivereds. Especially in the cases of recently announced initiatives, such as the 5 billion dollar plan launched by a platform of entrepreneurs and philanthropists to promote ecological transition projects in the global south.
“At the moment, there have been many announcements but few written agreements. So before celebrating we should wait to read the fine print“adds Cañada in an interview with this newspaper. As this expert explains, all these agreements respond to an exercise of “historical responsibility” of the richest (and polluting) countries in the world towards the most impoverished, less polluting countries and, in turn, most affected by climate disasters. “The countries of the global north have a historical responsibility in this crisis, so they are the ones who have to do the most to stop climate chaos,” adds this specialist.