Statement from International Monetary Fund Managing Director, COP28 President-Designate, and UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance
IMF News, April 11, 2023
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- Statement from International Monetary Fund Managing Director, COP28 President-Designate, and UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance
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Bibliographic details
- Published: April 11, 2023
Roundtable overview
- Co-chairs: Kristalina Georgieva (Managing Director, IMF), Dr. Sultan Al Jaber (COP28 President-Designate), and Mark Carney (UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance; Co-Chair, GFANZ).
- Event: Roundtable discussion hosted at the IMF to discuss actions needed to urgently accelerate climate action and finance.
- Participants: Representatives from governments, international financial institutions, development banks, philanthropic organizations, and private financial institutions committed to net zero.
Major findings and framing
- Climate change is one of the most critical macroeconomic and financial policy challenges IMF members face in coming decades.
- Capital is among the most important enablers of climate action, but not enough is getting to the people and places that need it most.
- Massive global investments are required to reduce emissions and boost resilience; a major shift is needed to harness public and, especially, private financing.
- Both the scaling of clean energy and the managed phaseout of fossil fuels on an accelerated time frame must be financed by public and private sectors.
- Stronger mechanisms are needed to promote cooperation and risk-sharing among stakeholders to mobilize private capital.
Identified obstacles and areas for acceleration (to COP28 and beyond)
- Make the investment environment more conducive to climate finance.
- Identify specific obstacles that impede private sector climate finance.
- Propose reforms to help strengthen countries’ macroeconomic and balance of payments stability by reducing risks associated with climate change.
- Use innovative financing instruments to scale up private investment in emerging and developing economies.
- Improve policy, regulatory, technological and information frameworks and financial toolkits to support private capital mobilization and broaden the investor base, especially in emerging and developing economies.
- Continue collaboration between now and COP28 in Dubai, and beyond, to define and implement specific measures toward shared goals.
Policy recommendations and calls to action
- Substantially increase concessional finance that can lower risk and attract private capital more efficiently to emerging and developing countries.
- Finance all components of the energy transition, including scaling clean energy and managing the phaseout of fossil fuels.
- Explore new instruments to drive private sector finance more effectively and more efficiently to emerging and developing states.
- Accelerate partnerships between public and private finance to make the trillions of dollars needed become available as fast as possible.
Key statistics and targets cited
- "Only 20 percent of clean tech investment is going to developing countries that make up over 70 percent of the global population."
- "The least developed countries receive less than 2 cents on every dollar spent."
- "The world needs to triple the amount of money by 2030 that is available for clean tech investment, adaptation finance, and a just energy transition in emerging and developing countries."
Selected participant statements
- IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva: “The impacts of global warming are already destroying lives and livelihoods, so we need a step change in our financing approach to redirect trillions of dollars towards meeting the climate challenge. To get there, stronger cooperation and partnerships across the public and private sector are vital – there is no time to waste.”
- UN Special Envoy and GFANZ Co-Chair, Mark Carney: "To ensure that the impact of the net-zero revolution underway in private finance benefits all countries, we need a more efficient and effective multilateral financial architecture. I salute the leadership of Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF, and Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, President-Designate of COP28, on this imperative, and look forward to partnering with them and other stakeholders to deliver progress this year."
- COP28 President-Designate, Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber: “Capital and finance are among the most important enablers of climate action and sustainable economic development, but not enough is getting to the people and places that need it most. For vulnerable communities, across the global south, climate finance is nowhere near available, affordable, or accessible enough. As the UAE prepares to host COP28 later this year, I am keen to apply a business mindset and action-oriented approach to enable the transformational progress the world needs. And I am hopeful that we can find pathways to reignite the relationship between public and private finance to meet development and climate goals at the same time.”
IMF Communications Department, April 11, 2023.