Green Climate Fund Under Fire, Accused of Overlooking Most Vulnerable
The Green Climate Fund, set up to channel billions of dollars to help poor countries tackle climate change, came under fire on Thursday over its choice of which projects to back, as activists said it was overlooking the needs of the most vulnerable people.
The board, which met for the past three days at the fund's head office in South Korea, approved $755 million in funding for eight new projects, bringing its total allocation to $2.2 billion since 2015.
But civil society groups were disappointed the board did not support a $100 million proposal to bolster Ethiopians, especially women, against an increasing risk of drought, which is currently affecting more than a fifth of the population.
The refusal by some rich nations to get behind the U.N.-led project reflected disagreement over whether the fund's cash should be used for activities that might be regarded as overseas development assistance rather than closely focused on helping people adapt to climate change effects.
Julien Harneis