The Commonwealth People’s Forum — the largest gathering of civil society in the Commonwealth — convened leading climate negotiators and experts to discuss how the Commonwealth can deliver climate justice for communities on the frontlines of global warming. Climate negotiators, climate finance experts and youth leaders came together recently at the Commonwealth People’s Forum to discuss how the coalition of 56 Commonwealth member states can advance climate justice.
Ahead of next month’s climate change negotiations (COP29) which civil society has tagged the ‘Finance COP’, Commonwealth advocates have called for fairer and more practical accessible climate finance.
This is the first time collective civil society organisations from across 56 nations have delivered a people-powered report to the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) with the discussion spanning how civil society can encourage Commonwealth leaders to build new agreements for collective action in the lead up to COP29.
In a series of panel events, advocates discussed policy ideas which could meet the immediate needs of the Commonwealth’s most marginalised and remote communities while building long-term resilience, including paying climate reparations.
Kumi Naidoo, climate and human rights advocate said: “When people in the Global South are asking for this finance, we are not asking for charity. We are saying, ‘Pay your climate debt. We see massive investments in fossil fuels, but the resources are scarce for climate finance. We demand justice and climate finance must go toward protecting people, not industries that harm them.”
Jevanic Henry, the Caribbean representative on the UN Secretary General’s Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change said: “One of the biggest barriers of accessing climate finance for small nations is the complexity. The requirements are too onerous for countries with limited capacity.”
Othniel Yila, the Commonwealth National Climate Finance Adviser for Zambia said: “In many of these places, the key constraint is a lack of data, and the lengthy processes make it almost impossible to access funds within the time frame needed.”
Christopher Bartlett, Climate Change and Resilience expert said: “The new finance goal must be relevant to the needs of developing countries, with a focus on public sector finance. It must be based on justice and must provide funding for loss and damage, adaptation, and mitigation.”
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