Tony Carnie
The former head of the UN climate treaty system has warned that the new Green Climate Fund being discussed in Durban could become “a mere subsidy factory”.
Yvo de Boer, who was head of the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change until early last year, also said there was a perception that the world climate-change negotiation process had gone to sleep.
But De Boer, who is a special adviser to KPMG, a global audit and financial services group, suggested that the future of the Kyoto Protocol should not be the only item on the agenda.
Outlining his expectations of the Durban climate meeting from a business perspective, De Boer said: “With the clock ticking and hopes fading for Kyoto, there is much more for business to be aware of than the single issue of a global climate-change agreement.
“Among all this promise of rigorous debate on the future of our world’s climate, perceptions that the climate-change negotiation process has gone to sleep and that governments are too preoccupied with economic crises to drive forward climate action are understandable.”
However, American business leaders, in particular, would be remiss if they did not pay attention and engage in several other issues at the Durban talks, he said.
These included the investment potential from the $100 billion (R820bn) Green Climate Fund, which was intended to help developing countries combat climate change and adapt to its impacts.
Vital
“Various carbon-market mechanisms will be strenuously debated, and bilateral carbon-trading agreements between nations are expected to be high on the agenda.
“The conference offers a significant opportunity to work towards a business-friendly response to climate change. This is vital. Without business involvement, there is a risk that agreements could be policy paper tigers rather than practical plans that catalyse the private sector engagement essential to the success of the fight against climate change.”
If the Green Climate Fund was to drive effective, large-scale action on the ground in developing countries, it had to blend both public and private finance.
“COP17 needs to make sure the fund does not become a mere subsidy factory,” said De Boer.
“Business needs to leave negotiators at Durban in no doubt that their approach… will make or break the possibility of private-sector involvement.
“If policy makers design agreements in a way that allows business to engage, then their significant financial resources, technology and capacity for innovation can be mobilised.”
De Boer said the documents from last year’s climate-change talks in Cancun, Mexico, had made little mention of the role of business, yet corporate involvement was critical in tackling climate change.
“This lack of engagement must change,” he said. “Governments must give companies and investors the confidence they need to ensure they can play their part in making any agreements and new systems arising out of Durban work.”
