By Hauwa Ali
The United Nations Regional Commissions, and the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions for COP26 and COP27 are jointly organising a series of regional forums to accelerate financial flows to the projects needed to reduce emissions, build climate resilience, and advance the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Kicking off from Africa, the regional Forums on Climate Initiatives to Finance Climate Action and the SDGs seek to convene countries looking to raise capital for critical climate projects and initiatives alongside representatives of the most significant financial institutions, such as Regional Development Banks and members of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) interested to finance bankable projects that can contribute to transformative adaptation and mitigation outcomes.
Taking place across Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean regions, the five forums are a targeted initiative to drive greater public and private investment in the regions where the need is greatest.
Sameh Shoukry, Egyptian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mark Carney, Co-Chair of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero and UN Special Envoy for Climate Action; and Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations are all going to be present at the forums.
The forums schedule is as follows:
· Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (August 2 to 4) – At the meeting of the African Group of Negotiators for COP27.
· Bangkok, Thailand (August 25) – Following on from the Asia Pacific Business Forum.
· Santiago, Chile (September 1 to 2) – A forum on climate finance and the energy transition, covering Latin America and the Caribbean.
· Beirut, Lebanon (September 15) – A one-day regional forum on climate finance needs and investment opportunities in Arab States.
· Geneva, Switzerland (September 20) – High-Level Roundtable on ‘enhancing sustainable management and financing for the critical raw materials required for low-carbon transitions’.
The “Towards COP27, the forums will tackle how best to de-risk investments in developing countries and provide practical opportunities for countries to present their investment-ready climate initiatives and projects and engage with financiers on concrete investment opportunities.
