Published 04:02 IST, December 11th 2020
New Zealand far from achieving climate funding goals for developed nations: OXFAM report
New Zealand must increase public funding to $67 billion to meet ‘climate-specific’ finance levels that only averaged to NZ $51 million per year, OXFAM said.
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New Zealand has been lagging behind in its funding goals aimed at enabling the climate action for its neighbours in the Pacific and has shunned its responsibilities per the international climate law, a new OXFAM report Standing With The Frontlines revealed.
According to OXFAM, New Zealand failed to meet its financial target of $100 billion for the developing and the climate-vulnerable countries, subsequently, unable to fulfil terms of the Paris Agreement. "New Zealand should double its climate finance to get closer to doing its fair share towards the $100 billion goals," experts said, adding that the country must mobilise its climate funds per year from developed to the developing world by the year 2025.
New Zealand must increase the public funding to $67 billion to meet its ‘climate-specific’ finance levels that only averaged to NZ $51 million per year in 2017-2018, although was targeted for NZ $75 million by 2022, the report suggests. The finance is allocated by the country via New Zealand Aid Programme that sends half of the total aid to towards climatic goals of the Pacific Small Island Developing States to enable climate adaptation and mitigation efforts.
"Quantity of New Zealand’s climate finance has stagnated in recent years, putting it far behind comparative countries in per capita terms, at just $7 per capita," OXFAM noted. The country only ranked 21st out of 23 highly developed countries in total finance provided between 2017 and 2018.
"New Zealand has a legal responsibility to provide climate finance to developing countries to assist them in adapting to the warming and global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees," OXFAM said in a report.
'Raise' the climate budget
OXFAM recommended, that New Zealand must raise the climate budget in 2021- 2023 to NZ $150 million per year to meet its targets. Further, it added, that the country must deliver using a VOTE Climate Finance budget line to increase transparency between its climate-related development assistance and the climate-specific finance with an increased focus on developing nations.
Ahead of the COP26 meeting in 2030, New Zealand must be able to update its Nationally Determined Contribution, only having achieved the $100 billion goals, the organisation asserted. At the UN climate talks, New Zealand had committed along with the other developed countries to contribute $100 billion in climate finance by 2020.
Breaking: New Zealand’s overseas #climatefinance is a lifeline to many of the world’s poorest countries and communities on the frontlines of #climatechange but the level of funding is far below what is needed to meet international obligations. Our report: https://t.co/nSSHdOWrKQ pic.twitter.com/SfEXI5Lqqk
— Oxfam New Zealand (@oxfamnz) December 9, 2020
04:02 IST, December 11th 2020