Suche
Mein Konto
Climate finance: Merz is being criticized – Germany is wasting its word!
Chancellor Merz comments on climate financing at the summit in Belém, while Greenpeace points out a lack of commitments.
Climate finance: Merz is being criticized – Germany is wasting its word!
The international climate crisis calls for urgency, but Germany is falling short of expectations in the area of climate financing. At the preparatory summit for the climate conference in Belém, Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) did not provide specific figures on financial contributions for climate protection measures. A strong signal looked different, as Merz failed to make binding commitments to the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) and global climate finance, such as fr.de reported. This is where Greenpeace comes into play and criticizes the missed opportunity to give a strong starting signal for the upcoming negotiations with a clear financial commitment.
Germany's ambitious climate goals, which were formulated at the 2021 G7 summit under Angela Merkel, provide for annual climate financing amounts of around six billion euros. However, current estimates from the “German Climate Financing” initiative show that these funds will not exceed 5.3 billion euros in 2023 and are reduced to a maximum of five billion euros for 2026. Jan Kowalzig of Oxfam raises concerns that such a reduction could threaten trust between developed and low-income countries.
Climate protection as combating poverty
Federal Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan (SPD) emphasizes that climate protection is closely linked to the fight against poverty. The effects of climate change are particularly devastating for poorer populations, as illustrated by the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa. In her opinion, investments in renewable energies could not only secure economic prosperity, but also strengthen Germany's competitiveness.
The situation is not only a national challenge, but also fits into the international context. According to the Paris Agreement, the global temperature increase should be limited to below 2°C, with the aim of not exceeding 1.5°C if possible. This requires comprehensive adaptation measures and strengthening resilience to the consequences of climate change. According to the Climate Policy Initiative, an estimated $8,000 billion in annual investments are required for climate protection by 2030. A large part of this money is to be raised by developing and emerging countries, which often have very few resources of their own.
Build or lose trust?
The promises of industrialized countries to financially support developing and emerging countries come from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change of 1992 and Article 9 of the Paris Agreement. Already in 2009, a financing target of 100 billion US dollars per year by 2020 was set at the climate conference in Copenhagen, which was extended in Paris in 2015 until 2025. Nevertheless, this goal was not achieved until 2022, which severely affected confidence in international climate finance in these countries. The “New Collective Quantified Goal” (NCQG) is currently being negotiated at the 2024 climate conference in Baku (COP 29), which aims to double payments to $300 billion annually by 2035.
Time is running out, and experts like Martin Kaiser from Greenpeace are demanding clear financial commitments from Merz by the time of the conference. Otherwise, Germany could jeopardize its international reputation as a reliable partner in climate protection. In keeping with the EU's Sustainable Finance Strategy, which aims to channel funds into more environmentally friendly projects, the course must be set now.