With last-minute pledges by several countries at the UN climate talks in Lima, including Australia and Belgium, the Green Climate Fund succeeded in reaching its target to mobilize at least US$10 billion for the next 4 years. Yet that is just the beginning: now the GCF needs to look ahead to its next milestone.
The fund will now prepare to disburse funds to adaptation and mitigation projects. However, that is only part of the task; the GCF also aims to achieve a paradigm shift in climate finance, reduce fragmentation, scale-up overall finance to cover unmet needs, and integrate climate and development planning.
Moreover, there are several outstanding issues that need to be settled before the fund can be fully operationalized. These include setting up the necessary enabling environments, delivery mechanisms, direct access and implementing entities. It also needs to define the role of private sector in leveraging additional funding for climate activities.
Source: RTCC, UK
