Climate finance needs heart

DEVELOPED WORLD, EVEN IF BELATEDLY, MUST HEED CALL FOR MUTIRAO OR COLLECTIVE GLOBAL EFFORT

- ARJUN DUTT

COP30 IN BELÉM aspired to shift the emphasis of the multilateral climate regime from debate towards implementation, especially on the critical issue of climate finance for developing countries.

Delivering on climate finance requires hearts, minds, and processes: the willingness to act along with the solutions to act upon and suitable systems for delivery. Belém delivered on the latter two. Against a challenging backdrop for multilateralism, what it could not spark was enough heart in the developed world.

The release of the Baku to Belém Roadmap to 1.3T, a plan to deliver $1.3 trillion per year in external climate finance to developing countries by 2035, and the announcement of plans by several countries including India to set up country platforms to align investments with national climate priorities, offer the systems and solutions. Yet the political reluctance of many developed countries was palpable, which was unsurprising considering that development assistance from them is expected to fall by 9-17% in 2025 on top of a 9% drop in 2024. In this context, the outcome featuring a call for a trebling of adaptation finance by 2035 was an important win. However, other issues persist. The Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage remains insufficiently capitalised. The Green Climate Fund and the Global Environment Facility continue to be plagued by cumbersome access, while the debate over Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement—concerning the scope and enforceability of developed country financial obligations—remains an open wound in the process.