Speaking from a devastated Grenada in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl this month, the head of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change laid bare the biggest obstacle facing climate frontline communities.
“Governments in these vulnerable, developing islands have such limited fiscal space. They’re heavily debt burdened. They don’t have the financial means to continue to borrow to rebuild what they have just rebuilt, only for it to be destroyed again,” Simon Stiell said in an emotional interview, as the small Caribbean island’s community struggles to pick up the pieces.
If ever there as a snapshot of the brutal socio-economic impact of climate change, it is this: peoples’ lives and livelihoods were swept away overnight.
And, as Mr Stiell pointed out, the impact of Hurricane Beryl also highlights the global climate fight’s biggest challenge: making finance accessible and affordable to vulnerable and emerging markets and developing economies – otherwise known as EMDEs.
The climate fight won’t make any headway if the global financial system isn’t reformed. Far too many low-income economies are imperilled by mounting debt, entrapped and forced to repay higher-interest loans on money borrowed to fight the consequences of increasing extreme weather events.
Finance holds the key to unlocking new, inclusive climate mitigation and adaptation solutions. It is rightly, therefore, at the top of the international community’s agenda this year.
Brazil, the G20 president, has pushed reform of the climate finance system hard. This was on display at the third G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Rio de Janeiro last week. The subsequent communique emphasised the group’s focus on “promoting effective policy frameworks and mobilising adequate, affordable and accessible finance to address climate change and biodiversity challenges”.
Importantly, the meeting also showed important signs of integration with the global climate action agenda laid out by the Cop28 UAE presidency, at the Cop28-G20 Conference on Sustainable Finance, held on the sidelines in Rio. At the conference, the UAE’s Minister of State for Financial Affairs, Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, called for an international framework that supports the distribution of finance in ways that mitigate investment risks in developing countries.
Hurricane Beryl highlights climate fight’s biggest challenge: making finance accessible and affordable to vulnerable countries
Given the fact that this year, the G20 Leaders’ Summit overlaps with the first days of Cop29 – when heads of state and government usually convene at the UN climate talks – a direct merging of agendas from the two influential bodies can be seen. In this sense, integration between these two bodies is both inevitable and important.
Much of the momentum behind the issue of climate finance was generated seven months ago, when Cop28 ushered in a new dawn for a practical, pragmatic approach to closing the climate finance gap and investing in an equitable energy transition that leaves no one behind.
As well as securing $85 billion in new commitments and replenishing the Green Climate Fund, Cop28 secured an agreement on a new Global Climate Finance Framework with 10 principles for closing the finance gap that the transition demands, which currently stands at about $7 trillion a year by 2050, according to data from the International Renewable Energy Agency.
Investing this $7 trillion annually to greenify the global economy and close the financing gap is not only critical to achieving our shared climate goals, it also presents an unprecedented opportunity to accelerate local, regional and global low-carbon, climate resilient, inclusive growth.
The good news is that climate finance is moving in the right direction. More than $1.7 trillion was invested in clean energy alone in 2023, which coincided with a 13.9 per cent growth in renewable energy power capacity, according to Irena.
The not-so-good news is that climate finance is not moving fast enough. Further delays are only exacerbating the urgency of future needs, with the annual sum of climate finance needed set to rise only if the shortfall persists.
This climate finance gap is felt especially acutely in EMDEs in the Global South. According to a report by the Independent High-level Expert Group on Climate Finance, $2.4 trillion worth of investment a year is needed in EMDEs by 2030 across the priorities of a just energy transition, adaptation and resilience, loss and damage, and the conservation and restoration of nature.
This figure represents a four-fold increase from current levels devoted to these areas. And, as the first Global Stocktake highlighted, climate investments and accessible finance in EMDEs are severely lacking.
Further, EMDEs are being left behind on clean energy. While clean energy investments hit an all-time global peak last year, more than 90 per cent of the increase in these investments since 2021 has taken place in the developed economies, and China. Low- and lower-middle income countries accounted for only 7 per cent of clean energy spending in 2022.
The challenges to overturning the climate finance status quo are clear. EMDEs face higher interest rates, impractical policy frameworks and market designs, and a higher cost of capital. The solutions should be just as clear.
Guided by international co-operation, we need to see an urgent scaling-up of climate finance that prioitises the needs of EMDEs with ready solutions to easing debt burdens. It is on these frontlines – the small islands, the developing states, the vulnerable and emerging economies – where the fight against climate change and the race to the energy transition will be won and lost.
Initiatives such as Irena’s Energy Transition Acceleration Financing Platform and Lives and Livelihoods seek to mobilise and redirect crucial finance to the parts of the world that need it the most. This is important to build and rebuild infrastructure; to support vital industries that frontline communities rely on, like food, agriculture, health care and education; and to build new energy capabilities so that no-one lives in the dark.
For finance to trickle down, however, the taps at the top need to be turned on. And a new financial architecture needs to be built so that capital flows quicker and easier.
The systemic nature of the climate crisis means that it can be tackled effectively only through expedient and efficient economy-wide reforms designed to deliver the quantity and quality of finance necessary for all communities to transition to climate resilience and safety.
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Venue and schedule Sharjah Cricket Stadium, December 14 to 17
Teams
Maratha Arabians Leading player: Virender Sehwag; Top picks: Mohammed Amir, Imad Wasim; UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Zahoor Khan
Bengal Lions Leading player: Sarfraz Ahmed; Top picks: Sunil Narine, Mustafizur Rahman; UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Rameez Shahzad
Kerala Kings Leading player: Eoin Morgan; Top picks: Kieron Pollard, Sohail Tanvir; UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Imran Haider
Pakhtoons Leading player: Shahid Afridi; Top picks: Fakhar Zaman, Tamim Iqbal; UAE players: Amjad Javed, Saqlain Haider
Punjabi Legends Leading player: Shoaib Malik; Top picks: Hasan Ali, Chris Jordan; UAE players: Ghulam Shabber, Shareef Asadullah
Team Sri Lanka Cricket Will be made up of Colombo players who won island’s domestic limited-overs competition
BeIN Sports currently has the rights to show
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- Spanish Primera Liga
- Italian, French and Scottish leagues
- Wimbledon and other tennis majors
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MIDWAY
Produced: Lionsgate Films, Shanghai Ryui Entertainment, Street Light Entertainment
Directed: Roland Emmerich
Cast: Ed Skrein, Woody Harrelson, Dennis Quaid, Aaron Eckhart, Luke Evans, Nick Jonas, Mandy Moore, Darren Criss
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
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Job: Fitness entrepreneur, body-builder and trainer
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite quote: We must become the change we want to see, by Mahatma Gandhi.
Favourite car: Lamborghini
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- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
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Four motivational quotes from Alicia's Dubai talk
“The only thing we need is to know that we have faith. Faith and hope in our own dreams. The belief that, when we keep going we’re going to find our way. That’s all we got.”
“Sometimes we try so hard to keep things inside. We try so hard to pretend it’s not really bothering us. In some ways, that hurts us more. You don’t realise how dishonest you are with yourself sometimes, but I realised that if I spoke it, I could let it go.”
“One good thing is to know you’re not the only one going through it. You’re not the only one trying to find your way, trying to find yourself, trying to find amazing energy, trying to find a light. Show all of yourself. Show every nuance. All of your magic. All of your colours. Be true to that. You can be unafraid.”
“It’s time to stop holding back. It’s time to do it on your terms. It’s time to shine in the most unbelievable way. It’s time to let go of negativity and find your tribe, find those people that lift you up, because everybody else is just in your way.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
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6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
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8.50pm: Calandogan
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Engine: 2x201bhp AC Permanent-magnetic electric
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Umm Al Quwain – Call 999
Fujairah - Call 092051100 or 092224411
England's all-time record goalscorers:
Wayne Rooney 53
Bobby Charlton 49
Gary Lineker 48
Jimmy Greaves 44
Michael Owen 40
Tom Finney 30
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Alan Shearer 30
Viv Woodward 29
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- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100
- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100
- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India
- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100
- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth
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Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
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Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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1. India - 270 ranking points
2. England - 265 points
3. Pakistan - 261 points
4. South Africa - 253 points
5. Australia - 251 points
6. New Zealand - 250 points
7. West Indies - 240 points
8. Bangladesh - 233 points
9. Sri Lanka - 230 points
10. Afghanistan - 226 points
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Uefa Nations League A Group 4
England 2 (Lingard 78', Kane 85')
Croatia 1 (Kramaric 57')
Man of the match: Harry Kane (England)
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%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3ECystic%20fibrosis%20is%20a%20genetic%20disorder%20that%20affects%20the%20lungs%2C%20pancreas%20and%20other%20organs.%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EIt%20causes%20the%20production%20of%20thick%2C%20sticky%20mucus%20that%20can%20clog%20the%20airways%20and%20lead%20to%20severe%20respiratory%20and%20digestive%20problems.%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPatients%20with%20the%20condition%20are%20prone%20to%20lung%20infections%20and%20often%20suffer%20from%20chronic%20coughing%2C%20wheezing%20and%20shortness%20of%20breath.%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ELife%20expectancy%20for%20sufferers%20of%20cystic%20fibrosis%20is%20now%20around%2050%20years.%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A
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Wayne Rooney 53
Bobby Charlton 49
Gary Lineker 48
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6.30pm: Madjani Stakes Group 2 (PA) Dh97,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,400m
7.40pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 2,200m
8.50pm: Dubai Creek Mile Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 1,600m
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'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
