By Pita Ligaiula in Port Vila
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has submitted its application to become a technical observer at the Forum Economic Ministers Meeting (FEMM).
This was revealed by Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat Climate Change Finance adviser, Exsley Taloiburi during a media briefing with regional journalists covering FEMM.
“There are clear benefits of having key funding mechanisms such as GCF on the table because they would hear directly from our members on the challenges that they face. At the officials meeting, many members raised concerns about the difficulties they face in accessing climate finance as an ongoing saga. How it translates and filters to the decision-making processes within the global fund such as the GCF at the moment is quiet a challenge and so if we have them physically present in the room, it provides an opportunity to hear directly from our members. It provides an opportunity for our members to engage and interact directly with them to raise their concern.
“In addition to that if they become an observer to FEMM it brings them closer to Finance Ministers and Finance Ministries. The GCF set up is mainly with Ministry of Climate change and Environment those are the agencies that have the national designated authority or the focal point for GCF not the Ministry of Finance, except for a few countries. When you bring them closer to the Finance Ministers, it means you linking their investments with the heart of budget planning, with national development plans,” Taloiburi explained.
The Green Climate Fund is a fund established within the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to assist developing countries in adaptation and mitigation practices to counter climate change.
The FEMM meeting starts today and ends on Friday.
SOURCE: PACNEWS
