Across negotiation rooms, ministers from climate-vulnerable nations warned that without reliable funding, there can be no path to safety, justice or survival. Every advance in adaptation, resilience and emissions reduction, they said, depends on finance.
Speaking at the Third High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Finance, United Nations (UN) General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock called on countries to begin implementing up to $1.3 trillion in annual climate finance. She stressed that these resources must reach the most vulnerable “quickly, transparently and fairly”, noting that climate action and social justice are inseparable.
“Climate insecurity fuels hunger and poverty, poverty drives migration and conflict; and conflict, in turn, deepens poverty and deters investment,” she said. Breaking this cycle, she added, is crucial to meeting global climate goals.
Reflecting on the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, Ms Baerbock said that what once seemed “unrealistic”, including the large-scale deployment of renewable energy, had now become mainstream. In 2024, investment in clean energy reached $2 trillion, almost $800 billion more than in fossil fuels. Solar power has also become the cheapest source of electricity in history.
Yet she warned that capital still fails to flow to regions that need it most. Africa, home to more than 600 million people without electricity, holds renewable energy potential 50 times greater than the world’s projected power demand for 2040. But financing shortfalls continue to hinder progress.
UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell described finance as the “lifeblood of climate action”, capable of turning plans into implementation. But he said vulnerable countries still struggle to access funds pledged years ago. Despite increasing global investment, he warned that current levels remain insufficient, unpredictable and unevenly distributed.
“At COP30, the world is looking for proof that climate co-operation delivers,” he said. “Real finance, flowing fast and fair, is central to that proof.” Stiell added that when financing is unlocked, ambition expands, driving jobs, reducing living costs and strengthening communities against climate shocks.
–UN/ChannelAfrica–
