In response to reports from negotiations that finance pledges to poorer nations made in Copenhagen won’t be met even with an extended deadline, Veronica Oakeshott, Head of Forests Policy and Advocacy at Global Witness, said:
“Nothing illustrates the failure of governments to align their policies and actions with the challenges of the climate crisis better than the contrast between the gaping hole in finance for the most affected countries and the massive financial flows going towards deforestation and fossil fuels.”
“Whilst 12 years ago, in Copenhagen, developing countries were promised $100 billion in funding to adapt to climate change, a promise still not delivered upon; in just the five years after the Paris Climate Agreement a far greater sum than that - more than $157bn – has been funnelled by banks and investors, including those on our high streets, into forest-wrecking companies. During the same period, the world’s 60 biggest banks have also financed fossil fuels to the tune of $3.8 trillion.”
“As global financial institutions continue to plough their funds into rainforest destruction and fossil fuels, making huge revenues in the process, the most affected countries still wait for their $100 billion.”