The funds will target developing countries, including the most vulnerable, to help them adapt to the adverse effects of climate change and limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The UK contribution is drawn from existing funds earmarked for international climate work under the UK’s commitment for 0.7 percent of gross national income to overseas development assistance. The climate fund now stands at around $9 billion, including $3 billion from the US, $1.5billion from Japan, $1billion from Germany, and $1billion from France.
These pledges should also help to add momentum to efforts to secure a global deal at the UNFCCC negotiations in Lima and in Paris next year.
“The poorest and most vulnerable on the planet are already suffering the effects of climate change and it’s our moral duty to act” said Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey. “From protecting low-lying islands and coastal settlements from the impact of rising sea levels to helping farmers struggling with lower crop yields caused by the weather effects of climate change – British aid can save lives. Along with the UK, other major economies such as the US, Japan, Germany and France have made substantial pledges and I urge other countries to be equally ambitious.”
The UK has a seat on the fund’s governing board whose 24 members, drawn equally from developing and developed countries, will decide on and supervise the fund’s spending. The World Bank will manage the fund’s financial assets as interim trustee, subject to a review three years after the fund starts in 2015.
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