Arab League bank envoy named first head of Cop28 climate fund

An envoy for an Arab development bank has been named the first head of a climate fund set up at the Cop28 summit in the UAE.

Ibrahima Cheikh Diong will run the politically sensitive “loss and damage” fund that pays out to countries hit by climate disasters such as floods and rising sea levels. About $800 million has been pledged to the fund since it was set up in Dubai last year.

Mr Diong, who is from Senegal and also has US citizenship, currently works for the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, which is owned by 18 Arab League states, as a special representative on social and environmental issues. He previously worked for the UN and African Union.

The UAE's Cop28 team welcomed Mr Diong's appointment as executive director. “We look forward to working closely with him to ensure that those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change have a fund that is robust, efficient, and fully functioning by Cop29,” a statement from the presidency said.

Donors will be asked to raise their contributions at Cop29 in Azerbaijan in November. Summit organisers want the fund to make its first payments in 2025, but there are unresolved questions about who will be eligible for the money and in what circumstances.

Mr Diong said the fund would offer “crucial support to low-income developing countries most affected by climate change”. He said he was “honoured to take on this role at such a pivotal time when the climate crisis is proving to be an existential threat to lives and livelihoods”.

The fund “will make a significant difference to those disproportionately affected, and I take this responsibility with humility and a full commitment to serve”, he said.

The choice of Mr Diong was approved by the fund's 26-member board at a meeting in Azerbaijan. Board member Richard Sherman said the selection of a “developing country leader” showed a resolve to help countries “particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change”.

Mr Diong has also been a special adviser to the president of Senegal, chairman of the board of Senegal Airlines and an African Union director on climate resilience, according to an online resume.

The selection process had been bogged down in technical details as a job advert was fought over line-by-line. One draft suggested the fund would handle “several billion dollars annually” but the US demanded the line be deleted.

Early pledges to the fund included $100 million from the UAE, about $400 million from European countries, and $17.5 million from the US. Cop28 President Dr Sultan Al Jaber told its first board meeting in April that the initial sums were a “good start” but “not enough”.

While countries in the developing world have called for a generous fund available to all, the US and others want a narrower focus on particularly hard-hit countries. The US also opposed suggestions the fund could act as a kind of compensation from top polluters.

The board also confirmed an agreement to work from the World Bank's offices. Cop29 President-designate Mukhtar Babayev called the meeting a “crucial step in enabling action on climate change” and said the Azerbaijan summit hosts would “continue to seek further pledges to the fund”.

Finance issues are expected to dominate at Cop29, where funding for loss and damage is just one of three areas of debate alongside money for mitigation (cutting emissions) and adaptation (preparing for extreme weather).

Island states will ask the world to pledge trillions of dollars in new climate funding at Cop29, going far beyond a previous $100 billion annual goal. Others want to update the list of wealthy countries expected to contribute.