India has indicated it’s ready for a scrap at the forthcoming UN climate talks in Marrakech, with finance and technology transfer top of the country’s list of demands.
With the UN still basking in Delhi and Brussels’ fast-track ratification of the Paris climate deal, many may have expected the COP22 summit to have been a joyous occasion.
It may kick off with celebrations, but in a statement released over the weekend Indian environment minister Shri Anil Madhav Dave made clear he wants to see the cash promised at previous summits.
“Mobilising means of implementation i.e finance, technology and capacity-building support before and after 2020: US$11 billion per year climate finance goal has not been met,” it said.
“At Morocco, India will insist for a concrete roadmap from developed countries. $10.3 billion committed to the Green Climate Fund does not match the enormous finance and technology requirements indicated by developing countries in their INDCs.”
Care & concern towards nature is integral to the Indian ethos. India is committed to doing everything possible to mitigate climate change. https://t.co/cKLlIu2J7S
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 2, 2016
On plans to share cleaner forms of technology – be that wind turbine designs or energy efficiency data – “not much headway has been made” added Dave’s statement.
And in a sign Indian officials do not believe the Paris deal has laid to bed the idea of a differentiation between the world’s rich and poor, it highlighted the “extravagant lifestyles” of developed countries.
“Simple everyday changes in lifestyles, when practiced by a large number of people around the globe, collectively will make a huge impact,” it added.
The comments underline the deep unease many developing country governments are feeling at the lack of progress since the Paris talks said Harjeet Singh, a climate campaigner with ActionAid.
“There is no doubt there is a huge amount of frustration, and this will build up if the Marrakech talks are just focused on accounting and transparency,” he said.
“There is a reason India has put this forward and that’s because we cannot just talk about the accountability of developing countries. We cannot hide behind a deal that is not done.”
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