Concerned by the “uneven progress” shown at supplementary Bangkok Climate Change Conference from September 4 to 9 on the issue of climate finance, a senior UN official maintained that rich nations should fulfill their promises to resolve the economic stalemate.

In 2009, during the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit, developed countries promised to give 100 billion US dollars per year by 2020 to developing nations. The fund is aimed at helping resource-deprived countries launch adaptation and mitigation efforts to combat the impacts of climate change, which include rising sea levels, floods, and related climate events.

Developing nations were expecting to make progress on the deal during the six-day Bangkok conference, but rich nations delayed the negotiations. “In Bangkok, there has been uneven progress on the elements of the climate change regime that countries are working towards,” said Patricia Espinosa, an executive secretary of UN Climate Change. 

Many fear that the slow progress at Bangkok is likely to have an impact on the Climate Change Summit, also known as COP 24, which is to be held in Poland in December. 

Harjeet Singh, Action Aid's Global Lead on Climate Change, maintained developed countries are going back on their word and refusing to agree on clear rules governing climate finance. If they remain stuck in their positions and fail to loosen their purses, this treaty may collapse. 

“We have a mountain to climb before the next climate summit this December. Finance ministers must now step in and deliver on the promises made in Paris.”

Erik Solheim, head of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) believes that time has arrived to strike a balance between the promise made by rich nations and the economic development in developing countries. 

“Developed nations need to stick to the promises made at Copenhagen to provide 100 billion US dollars to developing countries,” Erik Solheim, told CGTN during Global Climate Action Summit held in San Francisco last week.  

Economic facts about developing countries are changing

He added that the economic facts described during the negotiation process are also crucial. There has been a sharp decline in the price of solar panels, making renewable energy affordable in developing countries. 

“Countries like Singapore and a few Chinese regions and cities like Gansu and Shenzhen are better than many European cities,” he said. 

“Every nation has to share the responsibility to reduce emission and keep temperature rise within two degree Celsius,” Solheim added. "However, we can't expect countries like China or the Marshall Islands to invest as much as Germany towards controlling temperature rises," he added.

At the Bangkok summit, China took the lead and tried to convince negotiators about the need for a two-tier system for developed and developing countries in climate finance. Delegates from rich nations refused to accept the suggestion, leading to a stalemate. 

At the conclusion of the Bangkok summit, Patricia in a statement said, “We must recognize that countries have different realities at home. They have different levels of economic and social development that lead to different national situations.” 

(Cover Image: The small South Pacific island nation of Tuvalu is striving to mitigate the effects of climate change. /VCG Photo)