Jamaica Prime Minister Andrew Holness has launched the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) Partnership’s new Finance Strategy, which is aimed at mobilizing urgent funding for climate action.
The NDC Partnership, which Jamaica co-chairs with the United Kingdom (UK), has more than 200 members worldwide, including developed and developing countries, in addition to over 80 international institutions that all work together to fast-track climate change action.
NDC refers to each country’s strategy to cut its own greenhouse gas emissions and build resiliency against the negative effects of a changing climate in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
Jamaica is acutely vulnerable to climate change, lying in the path of destructive hurricanes and susceptible to drought, flooding and extreme heat. On a global scale, its contribution to the emissions heating up the planet is miniscule compared with major economies.
The Partnership’s new Finance Strategy demonstrates the partners’ commitment to accelerating the processes necessary to access climate finance for developing countries at a greater scale in the fight against climate change.
The aim is to support the development of regulatory frameworks to attract domestic and international investment, including through central banks; integrate climate plans into national budgets and post coronavirus (COVID-19) economic recovery plans, and identify as well as develop bankable projects with member and private sector investment.
Prime Minister Holness said approximately US$1 billion has already been deployed through the partnership to support countries in laying the groundwork for finance.
He indicated that the new Finance Strategy sends a stronger statement of the NDC Partnership’s continued commitment and sense of urgency to provide even more support.
“Financing the implementation of action on the ground that changes people’s lives for the better must be our focus going forward,” Holness pointed out.
He noted that Jamaica continues to play a leading role in the global response to the climate crisis.
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