The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is confident of having a global coalition for net-zero emissions by 2050 as measures are already underway.
Speaking at a hybrid press conference held at the UN headquarters in New York, the UN chief stated that “A great and growing global coalition for net-zero emissions by 2050 is taking shape.”
The UN Secretary-General is all set to speak to G20 leaders online over the weekend.
“By early next year, countries representing more than 65 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions – and more than 70 percent of the world economy – are very likely to have made ambitious commitments to carbon neutrality,” Mr. Guterres remarked, adding that “These commitments are sending a clear signal to markets, institutional investors and decision-makers.”
While urging developed countries to fulfill their climate finance commitments, the UN chief stated that “G20 countries must take decisive action in the boards of multilateral, regional, and national development banks, to urge them to collaborate, provide substantial concessional climate finance to developing countries, including for adaptation and resilience, and re-think their mobilization potential to unlock the trillions held by institutional investors.”
The UN head emphasized that “Adaptation to present and future climate impacts – particularly for least developed countries and small island developing states – cannot be the forgotten component of climate action.”
Observing the commitment made by economies to continue investing in fossil fuels as “troubling signs,” the Secretary-General pointed out that more than 50 percent of funding by G20 nations have been pushed to support fossil fuels than low-carbon energy.
“It is madness to borrow money to heat up a planet living on borrowed time,” the UN chief accented.
