Press Information Bureau

Government of India

Ministry of Finance

02-September-2011 18:13 IST

Fast Flow of Fund to Developing Nations to Address The Challenge of Climate Change

During the second Petersberg Climate Dialogue organized by the Government of Germany and South Africa in the form of an informal Ministerial consultations on climate change in Berlin on July 3-4, 2011, India underscored the importance of actual disbursement of fast start finance as the most important confidence building measure in the climate change negotiations. India emphasized that a gap in the promised flows and actual disbursements as well as lack of transparency in the information relating to the flow of funds was likely to undermine the confidence in the process and effectiveness of actions aimed at addressing climate change. In this context, the need to urgently institute a mechanism that ensures and records the actual disbursements in a transparent manner was stressed.

Climate Change Finance forms a core issue in the on-going climate negotiations under United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). According to the UNFCCC, provision of financial support to developing countries to address the challenge of climate change is an obligation that the developed country parties should urgently fulfill in order to address the problem of climate change. In this background, India and other developing countries have been stressing in the negotiations that the timely and transparent delivery of finance to developing countries holds key to addressing climate change. India is actively working with the members of G77 and China, the group of developing countries in the climate change negotiations under the UNFCCC to develop consensus on the issue of fast start finance, long term finance, the reporting mechanism of the fund flows and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) that has to be set up as per the Cancun decisions.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Finance, Shri Namo Narain Meena in written reply to an Unstarred Question in Lok Sabha today.

DSM/SS/PM

Climate finance transparency essential to secure timely disbursement and confidence in developed-country obligations under UNFCCC. Provision and transparent disbursement of climate finance is presented as an obligation of developed-country parties under the UNFCCC, with emphasis on ensuring that promised fast start finance reaches developing countries. The statement stresses a gap between pledged and actual disbursements and the need for a mechanism to ensure and record transparent, timely delivery, while India seeks consensus with other developing countries on fast start finance, long-term finance, reporting frameworks and operationalisation of the Green Climate Fund.