High-level Event on Climate Action and the Just Transition - High-level Week 2026
Meetings & Events
Date: 23 September 2026
Language: English
Transcript: https://transcripts.un.org/en/asset/k1z/k1zg4qsbxi
Transcripts available through this tool are created by using automatic speech recognition and are not official records nor official documents of the United Nations. Official records and official documents are available on the Official Document System of the United Nations.

---

UN · USG Global Communications [0:01]:

Good afternoon, Excellencies, distinguished guests, colleagues and friends. Welcome to the Secretary-General's special event on climate. I'm Melissa Fleming, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, and it is my honor to moderate this important event. We will be opening with remarks from the Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres. Secretary-General, you have the floor.


UN · SG [1:06]:

Excellencies, dear friends, I want to thank Turkey and Australia for their efforts in the preparation of COP31. And my thanks to all the leaders and countries that are here with us today. Excellencies, the world is crying out for climate justice in mitigation, in adaptation and in finance. We must answer that call with action and we don't have a moment to lose. A super El Nino is supercharging the impacts and science tells us the world is heading for an overshoot of the 1.5 degree limit. We must make that overshoot as small and as short as possible. But emissions are still rising when they must plummet. And fossil fuel expansion continues, defying science, economics, and common sense. We have seen how fossil fuel dependence wreaks havoc, driving up costs, draining budgets, squeezing households. and leaving countries at the mercy of conflicts and decisions far beyond their borders. Meanwhile, fossil fuel companies are banking windfall profits while everyday people foot the bill. Doubling down on oil and gas will only lock in vulnerability for decades. Fortunately, we have a way out because the crisis is accelerating but so are the solutions. Renewables are the cheapest, fastest, and most secure source of new electricity almost everywhere. Clean energy has gone from alternative to unstoppable. Excellencies, in this room, We have major economies and frontline nations, energy producers and consumers, different circumstances, but a shared interest for a faster, fairer transition, for energy security and independence, and for protecting people and livelihoods. At a time of deep geopolitical division, you can show how cooperation can deliver on four fronts. First, we must accelerate. Even if fully implemented, national climate plans point to warming beyond 2 degrees. We must close that gap this decade by tripling renewables, doubling efficiency, electrifying economies, slashing methane, halting deforestation, and speeding the transition from fossil fuels. I call on every country to develop a credible roadmap to transition away from fossil fuels with clear timelines. The G20, responsible for 80% of global emissions, must lead. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities must apply, but all countries must raise their ambition. Surging demand for power, not least from artificial intelligence, must be met with a surge in renewables, grids, and storage. Second, we must ensure fairness. A just transition must be built with affected workers and communities, creating decent jobs and strengthening social protection. Developing countries must shape it and share its benefits, starting with clean power for the hundreds of millions still without electricity, most of them in Africa. Excellences.

We must finance the transformation. The financial system must stop punishing vulnerability and start renewing climate action. That means mobilizing at least 300 billion US dollars a year for developing countries, with developed countries taking the lead. and scaling up climate finance to 1.3 trillion US dollars by 2035. Ensuring ambitious replenishment of the Green Climate Fund and the fund for responding to loss and damage. Making pollution pay, easing the burden and including repayments when disaster strikes. Easing debt burden that choked investment, that includes pausing repayments when disaster strikes. Reforming the international financial architecture to give developing countries a stronger voice and participation. Making multilateral development banks bigger, bolder, and better, and making every public dollar work harder with guarantees and other risks, risk sharing that lower the cost of capital. This allows for a lower impact. Fourth, we must protect people from the impact of climate change. Without adaptation, drought becomes hunger crises, storms become debt crises, and heat waves become killers. That is why we must triple adaptation finance. We must include resilience in every policy, in every budget, and in every infrastructure decision, and make sure that by 2027, every person on Earth is protected by an early warning system. Across all four points, we must safeguard the foundations of climate action. We must defend science and truth. We must defend the law. As the International Court of Justice has confirmed, protecting the climate is an obligation. And defending cooperation, because no country can decarbon the global economy alone or shield itself from climate chaos.

United Nations will do its part. Today, with our partners, we are launching a common platform on grids to help countries build the arteries of the clean energy age. The next phase of the Task Force on Critical Energy Transition Minerals will support six developing countries so that their mineral wealth drives local development, with added value remaining there. Since 2022, we have mobilized $2 billion for early warnings, with more than 160 countries receiving direct support to strengthen their systems. Excellencies, we must match an accelerating crisis with accelerating action, match the revolution in energy with the revolution in finance, and match rising impacts with rising protection. So I ask you all to deliver and then over-deliver. We are the first generation with the tools to end the fossil fuel age and the last who can avert climate catastrophe. Let us use them well, and I thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [10:47]:

I thank the Secretary-General for his powerful speech setting the scene and asking you all to deliver and overdeliver. It is now my pleasure to invite His Excellency, Mr. Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia, to the lectern.


Australia · Prime Minister [11:17]:

Well, thank you very much to the Secretary General, colleagues. We meet at a time where temperature records are being smashed, when European communities have endured the heat waves and wildfires of an extraordinary and frightening summer. Australia knows such extreme weather events all too well. And as summer approaches, Our region is bracing for a possible record-breaking super El Nino weather pattern, with its potential for bushfires, for floods, for cyclones and storms. The dangers are indeed everywhere to see. This month, I visited Palau in the beautiful northwest Pacific, which hosted the Pacific Islands Forum. You can see for yourself there how sea level rises and changing ocean chemistry endanger the safety and economic strength so loved by the people of the world. Action is not optional. For Australia, as it must be for all of us, that action starts at home. And last year, I stood here and announced Australia's nationally determined contribution of reducing emissions by 62% to 70% by 2035. The energy transition to make this target attainable is well underway. Last summer, in the hottest quarter experienced, but also with the most energy use, in December, half of the power in our grid came from renewables, a proportion that is increasing as new renewable projects come online. And this year, of course, we have stepped up to work with Turkey to lead negotiations at COP31. To be a success, all peoples must have a voice in that vital forum. And importantly, Australia is proud to support Fiji and Tuvalu to host the pre-COP summit in the Pacific in a couple of weeks' time. Last year, with other Pacific nations, we established the Pacific Resilience Facility, the first ever Pacific-led regional climate financing mechanism. And we've backed that commitment with the contribution of $100 million towards the fund's goal of reaching $1.5 billion capitalisation. And we call upon all countries to make a contribution to these efforts on the climate frontline. It is a fact that those countries which are least responsible for the rise in emissions and the change in temperatures, such as our Pacific Island family, are those who are most affected, most affected by climate change. Where for countries such as Tuvalu and Kiribati, it is literally an existential threat. So we must act. and we must act as a matter of urgency. Australia is seeking a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2029-30, and if elected, we will elevate the importance of climate security, particularly in the Pacific, but more broadly as well, because we know the potential cost of inaction is too high. But we also know the benefit which is there. As the Secretary General has said, this is not only about good environmental policy, this is also good economic policy. And the truth is that it makes good macroeconomic policy to shift to a renewable led clean energy revolution. But it also is making a difference for households. And I want to conclude with this. because we need to make sure that our communities and our population go with us on the journey. And one program that we have had very successfully launched just one year ago was to match the fact that we have the highest per capita number of solar panels on roofs in the world with battery storage. And what that has resulted in, we thought 100,000 Australians would take up the subsidy to store energy so that it was useful at the peak times, at dinner time and at night. But what we found was that that target of 100,000 has not only been reached, it's been blown away with 540,000 households in a population of 28 million, so representing over a million people in just one year. What that says to me is that if we get the policy settings right, people will participate and people will engage and people will benefit because those people who have now stored energy from their roofs, of course, are taking themselves off the grid and making sure that their energy bills are reduced to zero. But also by taking that pressure off the energy grid has benefited the entire population as well as business. So we can meet this challenge. We need to argue the economic case in order to have the environmental benefit as well and the benefit for cleaner air and everything else that comes with the shift that we can and that we must do in order to protect How we have life. Thank you very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [17:45]:

I thank Prime Minister Albanese, and it's my great pleasure now to welcome Michael R. Bloomberg, the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions, and also founder of Bloomberg and Bloomberg Philanthropies. Please join me in welcoming him to the stage.


UN · SG's Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions [18:12]:

Good afternoon, everyone. And let me thank the distinguished guests here today, including many heads of state. I wouldn't be misleading if I didn't say, please spend some money while you're here. Stores need the business. And thank you to the Secretary-General for bringing us all together and for his bold leadership on climate. He took office less than two months after the Paris Agreement went into effect. So I think it's fair to say he didn't have a lot of time to settle in and get comfortable. And to his great credit, he didn't waste a moment. Over the past 10 years, the world has had no more passionate advocate for action. Progress has always been as fast as it needs to be. isn't, but the world is approaching and surpassing milestones that were inevitable, unthinkable even a few years ago. Last year, more than 90% of power installation around the world was clean energy, 90%. That includes here in the United States, despite all the federal efforts to prop up fossil fuels. The US got more energy from solar power than from coal for the first time ever. Every step we've taken towards forward has saved lives by cleaning the air people breathe. The reason for this is simple. Clean energy costs have plummeted. Battery storage is rapidly improving. Solar wind and make the economic sense more than for fossil fuels for communities and for companies like Bloomberg as well. More countries recognize that clean energy is essential to their security and economic stability. At the same time, while there's still not enough climate funding going to developing countries, the amount has more than doubled since the Paris Agreement took effect. And more people are protected by early warning systems the Secretary-General has championed, which can mean the difference between life and death. Now, we all know that's not enough. Every day brings new evidence of the worsening harms of climate change. A few weeks ago, a collapsing glacier caused devastating flooding in Nepal. It has killed over 1,300 people tragically, and thousands more are still missing. Extreme heat has also caused thousands of deaths across Europe this summer. And in the United States and Canada, wildfires left more than 120 million people breathing unsafe air. The list of disasters goes on and on, and it doesn't matter where you live. No place on Earth is safe from climate change. Countries need more investment in resilient measures that protect people and in modern connected grills that will support the waves of clean energy installation. Both will require more of the kind of collaboration that has enabled progress over the past decade across government and business, philanthropy, nonprofits, and community leaders. These kinds of partnerships are behind all the work that Bloomberg and Bloomberg Philanthropies has been doing to move the world from coal to clean energy, protect the oceans, detect and fix methane leaks, help cities take action, bold action, and unlock more private funding for climate work. Working together, we can make great progress in all of these areas at COP31 and beyond. So thank you all again for your leadership and commitment and for making the time to be here. Mr. Secretary-General, we wish you all the best.


UN · USG Global Communications [22:19]:

Burke, for your words and also for your great support. We will now turn to a brief scientific framing video as we wait for Prime Minister Erdogan.


Speaker 8 [22:52]:

We just lived through the hottest July and August on record. Global sea surface temperatures are at record high, and the worst is yet to come. Subsurface ocean temperatures are also exceptionally high. There is a huge pool of very warm ocean waters that will fuel the intensity of a very strong El Nino, maybe stronger than anything we've seen since our monitoring began. El Nino is expected to peak towards the end of 2026, but its impacts will be felt long after that, including on global temperatures. 2024 was the warmest year on record because of El Nino. We now expect that record to be broken.

So science is now clear, we will inevitably breach the 1.5 degrees Celsius limit moving into overshoot, but science is also clear that unfortunately, when we do that, We enter dangerous terrain where we're likely to cross a number of tipping point systems that not only regulate the stability of the climate system, but also fundamentally determine life support for human development.

But here's the thing, even if we do exceed 1.5 degrees, we should not forget that 1.5 degrees absolutely remains a goal. That doesn't change at all. But now we have to approach it differently. And we kind of have to come at it from above. And if we do this, well, then we can get on a overshoot peak and decline pathway. And that means keeping peak warming as low as possible, keeping the peak as short as possible, and then working back temperatures back down as quickly as possible. The future will bring many unknowns, but we know that the decisions we take now will determine if we have a chance of returning to 1.5 or below. Because every fraction of a degree avoided, every year by which overshoot is shortened, and every adaptation action taken will save lives, will protect ecosystems, and reduce economic losses.


UN · USG Global Communications [25:55]:

I now invite His Excellency, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Turkey, to the lectern.


Türkiye · President [26:28]:

So, General Secretary.

Mr. Secretary General, Excellencies, Heads of State and Government, I extend my warmest and most respectful greetings to you all. I would like to thank the Secretary General for bringing us together today to address the issues of climate action and a just transition. As you may recall, last year here I stated that Turkey was seeking the presidency of COP31. This year we will host COP31 in Antalya province of our country from the 9th to the 20th of November. We are working to make this conference an event where the decisions we have taken on climate change are actually put into action. Together with Australia, we are conducting our preparations with an approach that will bring the expectations of different regions to the forefront. I believe that the pre-COP to be held in Fiji and the leaders gathering in Tuvalu will both help ensure that the voices of the Pacific countries are heard. Distinguished participants, the past 11 years have been the hottest period on record. The devastating floods in Nepal have painfully demonstrated that we no longer have time to lose. On this occasion, on behalf of my country and on behalf of my nation, I once again extend my heartfelt condolences and best wishes to the people of Nepal. As you know, during the first decade of the Paris Agreement, we established our common goals. Last year in Belem, we took important decisions to ensure the success of the second decade. And we must achieve much more in Antalya. We must bring ambition closer to capacity and we must bring targets closer to implementation. We have built our vision for COP31 around the concept of an implementation COP. In particular, we have set new targets on the road to 2035 in priority fields such as electrification and zero waste. and we expect your strong support for this agenda. Dear friends, any proposal that fails to reconcile our climate objectives with social and economic realities will be doomed to fail. Steps to strengthen the prosperity of countries need to be shaped in line with their own circumstances, their own capabilities, and development priorities. As inequalities in access to finance and to technology persist, It is not realistic to expect all countries to move forward all at the same pace. The stronger the link we establish between climate objectives, development and prosperity, the more effectively we can possibly make the just transition lasting and sustainable. So with these thoughts in mind, I wish our meeting every success. I extend my respectful greetings to you all with the hope of meeting with you again in Antalya.


UN · USG Global Communications [33:17]:

I thank President Erdogan. And I would now like to invite our first group of leaders. From the European Union, Her Excellency Ms. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission. From Palau, His Excellency Mr. Surangel Whipps, President of the Republic of Palau, Chair of AOSIS and Chair of PIF. And from Barbados, Honorable Mia Amor Motley, Prime Minister of Barbados and the President of the Climate Vulnerable Forum. Please come to the stage and take your places at the podiums. I see you are here. And I'm going to start with Ms. von der Leyen. The European Union has clearly recognized that the transition away from fossil fuels and energy security go hand in hand. So what steps is the European Union taking to accelerate the energy transition? And how do you plan to work with others to drive it globally?


EU · President of the European Commission [34:23]:

Thank you very much, Secretary General, Prime Minister Albanese. It's good to be back in the United Nations to discuss climate and energy policy. I think the summer was a summer of truth. The recent summer months have been, as we heard from the scientists, the hottest on record, but maybe the coolest for the years to come. Europe is warming at a double the global rate, even though we account for only 6% of global emissions. Europe knows very well that the topic you're asking me to allude on, energy security, is a crucial one for us. And let me tell you the story we went through. We felt the pain of energy dependence for the first time when in 2022, Russia cut us off the gas. We had an energy dependence for gas, 45% from Russia. From one day to the next, we were cut off. We fought back. Our supplies are now more diversified. and in 2027, we will have no more Russian gas at all in the European Union. What we did, we invested massively in our homegrown clean energies, that is renewables and nuclear. We thought we are out of the woods. No way. Then came the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and we started to understand that we bitterly felt the cost of our general dependence on imported fossil fuels. You must know that the European Union does not produce any fossil fuels. So the imported fossil fuels, our dependence on that was the trigger point for the dilemma we are in. And let me give you one figure that shows how bitter this dependency is. Since the start of this conflict in the Strait of Hormuz, imported fossil fuels cost us an additional 90 billion euros without a single molecule of energy in addition. But Europe also has assets, and this is where I want to go to. There is electricity produced in Europe from homegrown renewables and nuclear. This clean electricity gives us independence, energy security, and it is affordable. Today, renewables are the world's fastest growing energy source. In Europe, 70 percent of electricity already comes from clean energies, but more has to be done, and this is my second point I want to focus on. These clean energy sources need better integration in our energy system. At the moment being, huge volumes of clean power remain unused or even wasted. Let me give you an example. Last year in the European Union, we installed more than 80 gigawatts of renewable capacity. That's good. But six times more capacity is still waiting to be connected. What a waste. So we need to boost storage and flexibility and accelerate grid connections. Our goal in the European Union is to double the share of electricity by 2040. With this, Europe could cut its fossil fuel import bill by 260 billion euros a year and invest it in the clean transition. Electrifying Europe means making Europe more independent. And allow me to conclude, what we're doing in the European Union can also be transferred to the global stage. Again, the figure from the beginning. Europe is responsible for 6% of greenhouse gas emissions, but warming twice as fast as the global rate. And therefore, of course, we get a lot of pushback also in the European Union. This is an argument that speaks for our engagement on the international scene to make sure that we have the investment in climate action that is necessary. Therefore, we are pushing forward the emission trading system worldwide, so a carbon pricing. We're pushing forward to double energy efficiency and triple renewables by 2030. And yet last year, we started the campaign together with South Africa on scaling up renewables in Africa. For all of that, we need investment. Global Gateway is our investment program of 300 billion euros for the clean transition. 150 billion euros are reserved for Africa, of which 60 billion are already invested in climate and energy, and 120 billion already programmed. So the short message I want to deliver here, we are at a watershed moment, yes, but you can count on Europe. Thank you very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [39:41]:

I think Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Union. Now I would like to ask His Excellency, Mr. Serenjal Wips, President of the Republic of Palau, as chair of AOSIS and the Pacific Island Forum, you represent countries on the front lines of the climate crisis that are also showing leadership. So what action do you need to see now from the international community, and what leadership can small island developing states bring?


Palau · President [40:14]:

Excellencies, Secretary General, President Erdogan, colleagues, I was in London this summer. It was London Climate Action Week. I have to say, if you didn't believe in climate change, that was proof that it was hot and those buildings were not designed, Secretary General, to handle the heat. For us in the islands, we've been continuing to rally the call that it affects our lives every day. And really, what's most important is that every fraction of a degree matters. So first, I think it's most important that we keep within 1.5. And we do all we can to accelerate sustained emission reductions. This is not an abstract target. It's something that we need to work on diligently. And I thank the EU for taking that lead. Second, the international community must change how climate finance is mobilized and how technology and capacity to support is given out. Resources much reach the communities fully, quickly, and directly without being lost in layers of bureaucracy and adding unsustainable debt burdens. Third, we need sustained investments in regional expertise, stronger regional data systems, and local skill development. This will help SIDS develop bankable projects, implement our nationally determined goals and contributions, and build institutional capacity and retain expertise in our communities. Fourth, we must realize the ocean climate nexus, and it must be central to our climate frameworks, not treated as an afterthought. For our islands, healthy ecosystems underpin our livelihoods. Fisheries, tourism, water security, and economic stability. Climate action and ocean action must therefore advance together. Finally, Pacific and SIDS voices must be present, heard, and fully considered in decisions that affect our lives and livelihoods. A just transition cannot be designed for us. It must be shaped by us. SIDS are not just vulnerable countries seeking support. We are partners with solutions. And I just want to mention three different solutions that we are working on. One is the Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity Plan. And that is the program that we've committed to 100% sustainable ocean management. And on top of that, 30% protection because we believe healthy oceans go right along with a healthy planet. The oceans are our second lung. So we ask for investment in our oceans, ocean protection and sustainable ocean development. Second, the Pacific Resilience Facility. the Pacific. This is the Pacific owned facility. It's a Pacific led and Pacific centered facility to allow finance to go directly to the communities that need it most. As President Abernathy shared, I mean, Prime Minister Abernathy shared earlier. Commitments has been made. But there is more to be raised that reached the 1.5 billion dollar mark. But the scale, agility, and speed are essential for us to adapt and to mitigate escalating climate impacts. So our call, therefore, is clear. We must transition. And one of our goals in the Pacific is 100% renewable Pacific. We believe it's achievable and There is no better time than now. The Strait of Hormuz crisis has caused the cost of energy to escalate to really unsustainable levels. Fortunately, in Palau, for example, 30% of our energy is now renewable. And because of that, at least energy costs were somewhat contained. So not only for the climate, but for energy security, and economic security, we need a transition. But we need partnership, we need investments, and we need all of us working together. Our countries may be small, but the models we are building have global relevance. And we stand ready to work with all of you to deliver a just transition that leaves no country and no community behind.


UN · USG Global Communications [46:04]:

Thank you, Mr. President. Prime Minister Motley, Barbados' leadership has been central to keeping the needs of climate-vulnerable countries at the heart of the international finance agenda. What are the most urgent changes needed now to tackle debt, bring down the cost of capital and unlock finance at scale? And how can some of the innovative solutions being advanced by the CBF V20 help deliver real investments for resilience and the energy transition?


Barbados · Prime Minister [46:37]:

Thank you very much, Secretary General, President of Turkey, Your Excellency, distinguished guests all. Thank you for this opportunity to share yet again. What are some of the needs Quite frankly, they're the same needs that we've spoken about year after year after year after year. The world has recognized that we need about $1.3 trillion by 2035 annually for developing countries. For the V20 countries, it works out to be about $490 billion a year. And to that extent, we have to understand that that amount is not easily attainable. What remains our concern is the absence of fiscal space. And I don't want to suggest that we haven't made progress because almost five years on from the Bridgetown Initiative, we saw the establishment of the Resilience and Sustainability Trust with long-term money being lent to climate-vulnerable countries for the first time with a 10 and 1/2 year moratorium. We saw the extensive use of debt swaps being utilized, debt swaps for nature, debt swaps for climate. by developing countries. We've seen as well the debt pause clauses, the natural disaster clauses that persons didn't give any chance of success and when they limited it to concessional financial institutions, they said we wouldn't get it in the marketplace. Barbados went to the market last year on the emerging market index for $500 billion million dollars and we got them with natural disaster clauses and pandemic clauses by the commercial markets in our bonds. So, these things are But we still need to go further. We still need to claim more fiscal space. There are too many countries whose high debt burden means that they cannot borrow more. And to that extent, we have to be innovative in being able to create space in a way that debt pause clauses will allow them to do. Similarly, we have to look at the cost of capital. And that is where the V20 countries have come in, have just come from the V20 forum. And in fact, in June of this year in Vienna, we signed the Vulnerability to Viability Compact, which isolates three areas: education, health, and water, water being a euphemism also for greater climate resilience. And we've agreed there with 16 international financial institutions that we will work to be able to try to create longer term lending, 40 and 50 year money we hope for, but at least 30 and 40 year money for these areas, because we cannot do the things that we need to do to build resilience with 10 and 15 year money. And we go to the annual meetings next month with a white paper to concretize these agreements that we have made. We also recognize that countries need to help themselves. and that therefore the development of individual climate prosperity plans is absolutely critical. In Barbados' case, we established an investment and resilience plan that shows our needs for investment over the course of the next decade. But we are not simply relying on external funding for that. We've made a determination, as I shared last year with you, to establish a resilience and regeneration fund locally, where every single employee in Barbados will contribute, contributes already, sorry, 0.25% of their salary without cap, matched by the employers, self-employed persons the same. And then the country use the measurement of ODA that has long eluded us in the last few years. of using 0.35% of government's GDP to put government's investment into that resilience and regeneration plan. We recognize that we need to help ourselves first while making the case for others to help us outside of this argument. What is needed? is an understanding that an unlevel playing field cannot continue. Climate-vulnerable countries pay 1.2 percentage points on average more than other countries to be able to borrow money. You cannot penalize people who are not on the front line of the crisis purely because of their vulnerability to the climate crisis. And that is what we have done by allowing this disparity in interest rates to continue. I also want to make the point that as we go forward, we are going to have to deconstruct much more of what we're doing to be able to ensure that those things that we can access are in fact available. It is one thing to say that we need finance, it is another thing to be able to access commodities and materials at affordable rates in time to be able to allow them to be executed because this is not an academic argument that we are having. So I hope that we can see that while we are making progress, there is still much room to go. And the fundamental issue comes back down to whether we can create the fiscal space, whether we can reduce the cost of capital, and whether we can so organize ourselves domestically to make projects easily executable. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [51:55]:

Thank you, Prime Minister, and thank you, Excellencies, for your perspectives, your commitment, and your visions. Thank you. Thank you. Please welcome Dr. Fatih Birol, who is the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency.


IEA · Executive Director [52:28]:

Mr. Secretary General, very many thanks for bringing us, all of us here today on a very important topic. Many thanks also to President Erdogan, Dr. and Prime Minister Albanese for the excellent leadership for COP31. Excellencies, today we cannot discuss any energy issue, climate issue, any economic issue, this associated from what is happening in the Middle East, the Strait of Hormuz. Some seven months ago, the most important energy artery of the world, Strait of Hormuz, is closed. And this sent shock waves to energy world and the global economy. Oil, LNG, fertilizer flows have stopped. Prices went up. Diesel prices, LPG prices, other energy prices. And many countries around the world once again understood the critical importance of energy security. And this big shock, big supply disruption, made many governments around the world reviewing, reassessing their energy strategies, their energy choices, their energy partners. As we have seen in the previous crisis, these responses are fundamental for the energy world. And, dear colleagues, I talk with many governments around the world, in Asia, in Africa, in Europe, in North America, and elsewhere. I can assure you that a big chunk, if not all, of these responses to this crisis, energy security crisis, are based on clean energy choices. Extensis, many, many years in the energy world, we had three choices in front of us. Shall I choose the most secure energy option? shall I choose the most economic energy option or shall I choose the cleanest energy option? We have to make choices, we have to make trade-offs. But when we look at the world today, for the first time since years, all of these three objectives are getting aligned, they are getting very, very close to each other. It is the reason When I look at the numbers, what is happening in the last seven months, I see a big increase in solar, wind, batteries, nuclear power, electric cars and others. And this is, I think, a very good point to note. In that context, I would like to congratulate Turkey and Australia for choosing COP31 is the main outcome, the electrification target. Today, excellencies, the share of electricity in the global energy is 23%. And based on the study of the IEA, my own institution, governments have decided to put a target. It is 35% by 2035, 35 by 35. If this target is agreed in Antalya, the beautiful city of Antalya, I can tell you it will give a very strong and unmistakable signal to the investors, finances, utilities, governments and beyond. And this in turn will not only make the world much more secure, and make the consumers being having an affordable option, but at the same time, bring the emissions down, which should be a major outcome, major good news from Antalya to the rest of the world. Thank you very much for your attention.


UN · USG Global Communications [57:47]:

I thank Dr. Fatih Birol, the Executive Director of the IEA. And I would also like to thank the Secretary General and President Erdogan for their presence here for the first part of the Climate Summit 2026. They have to leave for other engagements. I would now like to invite our second group of leaders to the stage from Bangladesh, His Excellency, Mr. Tariq Rahman, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, and His Excellency, Mr. Rob Jetten, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. So I'm going to ask His Excellency, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, as a climate vulnerable country, what are the key commitments of your government to addressing climate change? And what do you expect from the international community to support global climate action and to address specific vulnerabilities of countries like yours?


Bangladesh · Prime Minister [59:21]:

Thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to explain how we in Bangladesh are trying to manage this issue. Mr. Secretary-General, I thank you for convening this meeting. Ladies and gentlemen, Bangladesh contributes less than 0.5% of global greenhouse emissions. Yet it is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries. By the end of this century,

12 to 18 percent of our coastal areas could be submerged by sea level rise, affecting the livelihoods of tens of millions. Climate change has caused loss and damage equivalent to 1 percent of our GDP, and our food security is at serious risk. In this budget, two months back, we have allocated nearly 3.19 billion US dollar for climate adaption. Yet, without international support, we risk severe damage. Ladies and gentlemen, we have taken some measures to address this issue. We plan to plant 250 million trees over next five years. The reason why we want to do this, to plant 250 million trees, to bring down the heat, to bring down the temperature about one degree at least. The aim is two degree. We are also digging around 20,000 kilometers of rivers and canals. Alongside, we have two big rivers. One is Padma. So we want to build a Padma barrage. And there's another river, Tista. Tista barrage master plan we want to implement for retaining water, reduce food risk, revive wetlands, and recharge underground water. Ladies and gentlemen, we aim to generate 20% of our electricity demand from the renewable by 2030. We are promoting greenhouse industries, including jute products, eco-friendly transport, which is EV, waste to energy, and circular economy initiatives while developing a national carbon market. But we cannot succeed in isolation. Collective action based on common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities is imperative. Ladies and gentlemen, excellencies, we call for five urgent actions. First, to achieve the 1.5 degree Celsius global warming limit through global emission cuts as set out in the Paris Agreement. Second, to ensure predictable and accessible finance for adoption in climate-vulnerable countries. Third, to enable a just and equitable climate transition through greater access to climate smart technology. Fourth, to expand renewable energy through accessible finance, capacity building, and technology transfer. And finally, to fully implement and replenish the loss and damage fund. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, Bangladesh seeks partnerships that help us implement our plans. Let us act together to build a safer and more sustainable future for generations to come. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:04:01]:

I thank the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. And I now turn to the Prime Minister of Netherlands. The Netherlands has demonstrated its commitment to transitioning away from fossil fuels. And you're also leaders in advancing innovative adaptation solutions. So how do you intend to translate this leadership into accelerated action in these areas, not just domestically, but also internationally?


Netherlands (Kingdom of the) · Prime Minister [1:04:27]:

Thank you very much, Your Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. It was a privilege to work with many of you when I was a Minister of Climate and Energy, and now as a Prime Minister, I'm even more committed to make sure that we follow up with more climate actions in the years to come, because we've seen the disastrous floods in Nepal, the wildfires and heat in many countries, or low river flows in Europe that are devastating communities around the world. And in many places in the past decades, we've seen that climate change is already occurring and affecting millions of us. So the question is no longer when or whether to adapt, but how to adapt in the quickest way possible. And as the Kingdom of the Netherlands, we know how much can be at stake. Adaptation is in our DNA because as a low-lying delta in Western Europe, we have centuries of experience living with water. And for decades, we fought the water to keep the water out. We canalized rivers, we built ***** but now we've also learned that we cannot simply fight nature, but we have to actually work with nature. especially also in periods with extreme intense rainfall or periods of longer droughts and rising sea levels. So this changing climate pattern urges and encourages us to come up with new technical solutions and to make use of nature-based solutions that are found around the world. And we do so in the European part of the Kingdom, but also in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom. We've adopted a new national adaptation strategy where we don't not only fight climate change, but we try to work with it in an optimal mix of prevention and the ability to manage and accept residential risk and flexibility for the nearby future. But at the same time, while we adapt to the impacts we are already facing, we must also address the root cause. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and phasing out fossil fuels is and must be our top priority. And I'm very proud that the Netherlands and Colombia recently brought countries together in Santa Marta for the first conference on transitioning away from fossil fuels. And together with 57 countries, we worked on concrete and practical solutions to advance this transition. And this is the kind of international cooperation that we need, and the Netherlands stands ready to partner up with all of you in the resilience and climate action. We need to act. We need to act as public partners, but also as private partners. What's very important for the nearby future is that we invest in the early warning systems to help ensure that fewer people worldwide are affected by disasters and that climate dependent economic sectors are less vulnerable. We do so by partnering up with the UN Early Warning for All initiative and through programs such as water at the heart of climate actions and by contributing to the systematic observations financing facility. And we do that with our national institute, KANEMI. I'm very much looking forward to travel to Turkey for the next COP. And I know that many of us feel a little bit What's it going to be this COP? Are we going to deliver? Or is it going to be the same speeches, the same talking points, or are we actually going to do something? And I always love to be a speaker after Fatih Birol, because he always shows us that all the technologies that we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are on the table. We just have to implement it. And all these nature-based solutions that we can use for climate adaptation So many societies have worked with that for centuries. So let's make sure that we do that in a much higher pace than we've been doing over the past few years. So we stand ready, the Kingdom of the Netherlands stands ready to work with all of you to win this fight against climate change.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:08:35]:

Thank you, Prime Minister Jetten and Prime Minister Rahman. Thank you very much.


Speaker 24 [1:08:39]:

Thank you. This time. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:08:47]:

It is now my pleasure to welcome Mafalda Duarte, Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund.


GCF · Executive Director [1:09:02]:

Excellencies, esteemed colleagues, UN Secretary General is no longer here, but Selwyn, please share my appreciation to him and to yourself, to the team, to the Deputy Secretary General, for all of the efforts in championing this agenda consistently, systematically over the years. It is quite reassuring to see this high level event with heads of state, heads of government, esteemed colleagues, partners, because I think there is a sense out there And it is important that the citizens realize, citizens globally, that this agenda has not lost momentum, that it's still very high as a political priority. We have also seen and we have heard recently about the recent UNEP report on overshoot and limiting overshoot. There was a video earlier about this. The most likely scenario is that we will go over 1.5 with all of the consequences and the uncertainties associated with breaching that limit, as the scientists so well explained to us. And so the question is, how much will we be capable of limiting that overshoot? So those conclusions of this most recent analysis are quite sobering, but they are not fatalistic. The overshoot might now be unavoidable, but its magnitude, duration, and consequences are not. Those outcomes will be determined by the choices we make, not tomorrow, not the day after, but today. This year, I chair the Multilateral Climate Funds. And I know with my colleagues, and we've heard it, that developing countries are very clear in their ask to us. They are asking for finance that comes at the right scale, at the right speed, with the right access, and that delivers the most impact. And we have heard that call. So let me take briefly one of the points at a time. On scale, we are all scaling. Last year, the Green Climate Fund programmed the largest volume of resources in its history, more than $3.2 billion. And this year, we should be on track to do very close to that. This is despite the current geopolitical environment. And through balance sheet optimization, which our board recently approved, we have unlocked Just this year, an additional $4 billion in additional funding capacity. On speed, we have heard the calls to reform. Even today, we have also heard from the Palau president the necessity to simplify and to accelerate access. We have heard that we have made commitments to do project review all the way to board approval within nine months. And this year, 95% of our approved projects were actually processed under nine months. Now on access, our accreditation process, which is a process through which we bring new partners, and right now we have already more than 165 partners. from governments to public institutions, private sector institutions, MDBs, UN agencies, bilateral agencies. Once, this used to take more than three years. This year, we have 15 partners that are coming to our board with an average of four months processing time. But here's an example of the system working. We are recognizing the due diligence that is already carried out by some others financial institutions in the system. In this case, I can name the African Development Bank or the World Bank when it comes to assessing the ministries of governments in developing countries. And it is with pleasure to note as well that the Fund for Loss and Damage right now is benefiting from our accreditation system. But it's not just about recognizing each other's work, we are building on it. In the Pacific, an adaptation fund pilot in Micronesia became actually a resilience program, a regional resilience program that GCF is financing, nearly $10 million program to reach 75,000 people. In Ecuador, a GEF, a Global Environment Facility, landscapes governance work became a large Green Climate Fund REDD+ financing that is reducing emissions by 7.3 million tons and transitioning more than 93,000 actors to sustainable agriculture. This is a system working together and what it can look like. On impact, our adaptation investments, we have heard the call to triple adaptation investments. And I would like to note that the simple decision that our board took some years back to make sure that 50% of our investments would be in adaptation, it is translating in significant adaptation investments. And it is translating in significant adaptation investments where they matter the most in LDCs, SIDS, and Africa. So thus far, the Green Climate Fund adaptation portfolio has already reached more than 375 million people, and we are on target to benefit 1.8 billion people. So this is one in every four people globally. In Tuvalu, and it is with pleasure that I see Prime Minister Tuvalu here, and he will be speaking next, GCF finance reclaimed land and built nearly three kilometers of coastal defenses, protecting 60% of Funafuti's population from rising seas and storm surges. In Barbados, our investments have secured water access for half of the country's population. During Hurricane Elsa, these investments kept the main hospital operational and the school feeding programs running. This is impact with every dollar. But we know that public finance alone will never deliver the scale that is required. And this is the point, the critical point of GCF and the climate funds. We are multipliers. Our greatest impact is not only what we fund ourselves, is what we unlock beyond our own balance sheets. We use scarce concessional finance to mobilize much larger flows of capital. In the case of GCF, $1 of GCF's finance unlocks $5 of investments. Despite our prevalence of adaptation investments and despite our focus on the most challenging markets, we still unlock one to five. In India, our Green Growth Equity Fund is helping build the country's electric mobility ecosystem mobilizing over $2.6 billion, more than 30 times our original investment. And this doesn't mean only reduced emissions, more importantly, creation of jobs, 100,000 jobs. Every dollar in our project preparation facility unlocks over $130 in investments. and 17 announced country platforms. And we see this as a very significant opportunity to support countries, bring all of its relevant partners to bear, public and private, multilateral, bilateral, together to articulate what are the most important strategic investments and have the system work in delivering those. In Brazil, the platform, and I see here, Ambassador Credo Lago, the platform has already developed a pipeline worth more than $25 billion, and several of the partners are coming to finance this critical pipeline of projects. So let me conclude with a couple of other remarks. It is really important to understand that climate finance is not charity. Climate finance is an investment in shared human and economic security. Climate finance is about food security, water security, energy security, all the things we are talking about today in this critical geopolitical environment. And so this is why a strong Green Climate Fund replenishment is critical. Investing 100Million dollars in means 9.2Million people who can be reached and supported to withstand impacts. It means 7Million tons of CO2 equivalent in foregone emission reductions, which is. more than the total annual emissions of a country such as Cambodia or Paraguay. It is 1.8 million actors of unprotected ecosystems, which is an area roughly the size of Kuwait. It is 162 megawatts of clean energy capacity installed that can deliver power to 130,000 households in the developing world. Every $100 million of GCF investments. This crisis is all around us. It is clear, it is evident, it is here. It's not tomorrow, it's today. And we have the solution. We know what needs to be done. So let us work together and be the agents of change and the leaders that this world needs. Thank you very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:20:04]:

Thank you, Mafalda Duarte. I would now like to invite our third group of leaders to the stage. His Excellency, Mr. Luis Montenegro, Prime Minister of Portugal. His Excellency, Mr. Francisco Carvalho, Prime Minister of Cape Verde. His Excellency, Mr. Shishir Khanal, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal. And His Excellency, Mr. Feleti Teo, Prime Minister of Tuvalu. Please come to the stage. like to direct the first question to the Prime Minister of Portugal. Portugal has demonstrated the benefits of rapidly expanding renewable energy. So how has this strengthened Portugal's energy security? And what further steps are you taking to further accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels?


Portugal · Prime Minister [1:21:14]:

Well, good afternoon to all of you. If you Allow me, I would like to speak in the most spoken language of the South hemisphere, the Portuguese.

I wait a few moments to put the headphones.

Excellencies, dear colleagues, regarding the questions I've been asked, I would like to thank to make a special thank to Secretary General Antonio Guterres. He has been one of the few voices, and more one of the clear voices regarding warning us about the climate energy emergency we face. Its effects are visible everywhere. the most visible effects of climate change, including in Portugal, in a very evident way. We have been confronted by extreme weather conditions, namely a concerning number of forest fires, as well as other phenomena such as storms and flash floods. In Portugal, we are therefore fully committed and we are making an investment in contributing and making efforts with our policies for environment preservation and for the environment we will leave to future generations. We have shown commitment on a future based on clean energy, and we will do our part to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, and most likely before that goal. We have been at the forefront of energy transition. We have developed robust public policies to decarbonize our economy and society, accelerated integration of renewable energy in our energy mix, promote energy efficiency, and ensure more social justice and affordable prices for households and industry. I would like to highlight two or three progress we have made in this regard. By 2030, we will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55%. We are diversifying our energy mix. With a strong focus on green hydrogen and biofuels, at the same time, we are doubling our installed renewable energy generation capacity. To give you an idea about the results we have, we have achieved in our economy, more than 75% of the electricity generated in Portugal comes from renewable energy sources. We are strongly committed to harnessing the potential of the ocean for offshore renewable energy. By 2030, we aim to reach 2 gigawatts of installed offshore wind capacity. But our efforts to achieve carbon neutrality and meet the goals of the Paris Agreement do not stop at our national borders. We have been working closely and innovative way to find new ways and innovative ways to finance these instruments. We have been working with partnering countries, including by exploring innovative financing instruments. One example is next to me. It's the mechanism of the debt for climate swap that we have with other countries such as Cabo Verde and Santo Ma and Princip. This is a commitment to convert bilateral debt into climate and environmental investments, redirecting debt repayments to a climate and environmental fund to be created by the government of the partner country. This is a way to finance climate of these countries and create new investment for energy renewal production. These projects are selected jointly by both countries that have debt with Portugal. and also promoting bilateral cooperation, transparency and accountability. With Cabo Verde, for example, this initiative involves the conversion of more than 42 million euros, which will be directed towards climate related projects with strong participation from the private sector. These actions reflect Portugal's unequivocal commitment to its longstanding partnerships and with Portuguese speaking countries. And that's why I'm also speaking in our common language. These initiatives that we are presenting on renewable energy are part of a strategy that seeks to achieve common goals, more accessible energy, that are a contribution for the preservation of biodiversity and our environment, and a guarantee of more strategic autonomy at a juncture when we are all affected by absurd and reality of paying more for fuels and oil. That, of course, has an impact on our families and economies and capacity to be more autonomous and sovereign and more friends of the environment so that we can offer energy sources that are more accessible. And this is a goal that we want to share with all of you, and we are continuing in future years.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:28:21]:

Thank the Prime Minister of Portugal for his statement. And as you mentioned, up there, we can also go next to the Prime Minister is here, Mr. Franco, as the next, but I'm going to ask you to speak first as the next chair of the AOSIS. You're going to be representing countries on the front lines of the climate crisis. And what are your priorities And what action do small island developing states need to see from the international community in this respect?


Cabo Verde · Prime Minister [1:28:55]:

Thank you.

Please. Excellencies, I would like to thank the Secretary General for convening this timely meeting. As a Sahelian small island developing state, Cabo Verde speaks with the same voice as other countries that are also living the climate crisis every day. For us, climate change is not a distant risk. It is an existential reality affecting our economies, our food and water security, our coastlines, and ultimately our people's future. Science is clear. A temporary overshoot of 1.5 degrees Celsius may not be unavoidable, but this must never become an excuse for complacency or diminished ambition. It must instead reinforce our determination in accelerating the implementation of the Paris Agreement. Our priorities are clear. We must keep the 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach by over-delivering on current commitments. This requires a rapid, just and equitable transition towards renewable energy, accelerating action on methane and other short-lived climate pollutants, and the full implementation of ambitious nationally determined contributions. Adaptation and resilience must receive the same political attention and financial support as mitigation. Small island developing states are already in investing in resilient infrastructure, water security, nature-based solutions, early warning systems, and climate resilient livelihoods. These efforts save lives and protect development gains, but they require predictable, accessible, and adequately skilled financing. Climate justice demands a fundamental reform of the international financial architecture. SIDS should not be penalized for their vulnerability simply because they have reached middle income status. We need affordable finance, easier access to concessional resources, operationalization of the multidimensional vulnerability index, strengthened multilateral development banks, effective implementation of the loss and damage fund, and innovative instruments, including debt for climate and debt for resilience swaps. And as incoming chair of AOSIS, Cabo Verde will continue the good work by our predecessors in strengthening unity among small island developing states and building partnerships that translate political commitments into concrete implementation. We will continue to advocate for the effective delivery of the Antigua and Barbuda agenda for SIDS, support ambitious nationally determined contributions implementation, advance ocean-based climate solutions, and ensure that the voices of those on the front lines remain at the center of global decision making. The international community must recognize that investing in SIDS is not an act of solidarity alone. It is an investment in global resilience, sustainable development, and our shared future. Let us choose accelerated action over delayed promises. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:33:11]:

I thank the distinguished Prime Minister of Cape Verde. And I would now like to ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal, Mr. Shishir Khanaal. Your country has suffered devastating losses from the catastrophic flooding recently. So what does Nepal need now to recover and rebuild? And what must the international community do differently to support vulnerable countries from worsening climate impacts?


Nepal · Minister for Foreign Affairs [1:33:47]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator. First, I wish to extend our sincere thanks to the Secretary-General for convening this very important event. At the outset, I'd also like to express our gratitude to the global community for the solidarity expressed in this hall and beyond. Let me recall a message by Secretary-General a few years back, three years back, from the lap of Mount Everest when he urged the world to stop the madness. He warned that Nepal's mountains are crying for help and that global inaction risked catastrophe for millions downstream. That warning, I believe, was not only a plea, it was a warning grounded in science and experience. The question before us is whether the international community truly heard this warning with sincerity, with conscience, and with resolve. In the recent disaster in Nepal, we've lost hundreds of life. As of today, 1,400 people have lost life, and 6,000 are unaccounted for. Of the 6,000 were unaccounted for, about 10% come from 38 different countries. Even though the pain was felt in Nepal, it has transcended the borders across the world. Also, the destructions of homes, livelihoods, and the sattering of development gains painstakingly built over the decades. These tragedies are not isolated events. are symptoms of global crisis, a crisis Nepal did not create. As you know, Nepal contributes less than 0.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions. 46% of Nepal land is covered by forest. Over 70% of new consumer vehicles sold in Nepal are EVs. over 90% or almost entirety of our energy comes from hydroelectricity power plants. Yet, we suffer disproportionately and repeatedly. The crisis has dragged vulnerable communities back into poverty. It has swept away roads, bridges, schools, homes, farms, and livelihoods. tripled hydropower infrastructure, the backbone of our future of our economic prospects. It has shattered the dream of many who saw hope in our steady development path. So in this context, obviously the first priority is to rehabilitate and rebuild better. Preliminary assessments indicate that from recent disaster alone, Nepal has suffered loss of over $5 billion, nearly 15% of our GDP and a third of our annual budget. Thus, for Nepal, this catastrophe is not merely a humanitarian emergency. It is a development emergency dismantling years of progress. It is a justice crisis exposing the inequities of global climate action, and it is an existential crisis striking at the very survival of our communities and our future. Let me now stress that what happened in Nepal was not merely a local tragedy. It was a warning to the world what might be coming next. as we think of what international community must do. In fact, the international community must act and not only differently, but very decisively now. We need a fundamental shift from promises to delivery. Vulnerable countries cannot navigate this crisis with fragmented support, unpredictable financing, and slow-moving mechanisms. We need scaled up, front-loaded and accessible climate finance that reaches communities before disaster strikes, not after devastation has already occurred. Adaptation must be prioritized. For countries like Nepal, adaptation is not optional. It is a lifeline. Doubling adaptation finance is an overdue obligation. Similarly, prevention and preparedness must remain central. We need universal access to early warning systems, affordable technologies tailored to mountain ecosystems, climate information services, and resilient infrastructure. At this point, we're asking for what we call climate justice. The loss and damage fund must be adequately capitalized, must be faster, simpler, and accessible. Multilateral development banks must mobilize rapid and affordable financing when disasters strike. Finally, the future of our glaciers, mountain, and water system is inseparable from regional and global climate security. What happens in the Himalayas does not remain in the Himalayas. The Himalayas are part of planet's life support system. We must therefore take integrated approach to address climate change impact from mountains to the sea. And there is a need for a doubling down on efforts to keep 1.5 degree centigrade global goal within reach. This is a matter of survival for mountains and the coastal communities. What we experienced in Nepal was Himalayan tsunami and one of the tragic disasters we have experienced. But the larger looming threat is even more consequential. It is not only the devastation we mourn today, it is far greater danger that lies ahead if the world continues to look away. For this, I call upon heads of state and the government, ministers, philanthropists, the media, civil society, the private sector, and academic community to rise to this moment with courage and clarity, to recognize that what happened in Nepal is not an isolated disaster, but a preview of what awaits many vulnerable nations, to understand that this crisis is not a distant headline, but a shared global reality. And to accept that the responsibility to act does not rest on the shoulders of vulnerable countries alone, it rests on all of us. I call upon you to treat climate action not as a charity, but as a matter of justice.

Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:41:07]:

Thank the Foreign Minister of Nepal for that powerful statement. And I would now like the Prime Minister of Tuvalu and other Pacific Island countries I would like to ask you, Tuvalu and other Pacific island countries have been at the forefront of calls to make climate finance more accessible and available at scale. So what would it take to mobilize finance and investment at scale and speed required by developing countries, especially in small island developing states?


Tuvalu · Prime Minister [1:41:41]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator. And to maintain some balance of languages used up here, I'll join my friend to my left to speak in English. Madam Moderator, may I, on behalf of the people of Tuvalu, express our deepest condolences to my colleague, the Foreign Minister, and the government and people of Nepal the tragic loss of lives in the recent floods. Our thoughts and prayers are with the affected families. The Nepal tragedy and many other experiences around the globe, including in the Pacific, do bear testament to the reality that the devastating and indiscriminate impact of climate change are no longer matters of forecast and speculations. They are happening now, and no one country will be spared. For countries like Tuvalu, we are at the forefront of climate change, particularly climate-induced sea level rise. And the question is simple. What good is climate finance if it arrives too late after the crisis? In response to that question, Madam Moderator, I will submit that three things need to happen. And these three things are matters that some of the previous speakers have already made reference to. The first one is that the process and modality of access to climate financing must be simple and easily accessible, particularly for small administrations like Tuvalu. We do not have the luxury of capacity and time to navigate through complex and convoluted procedures. to access climate finance. Secondly, climate financing must be in the form of grants and not more debt. Countries and communities going through climate crisis should not have to borrow their way out of crisis that they did not cause. Thirdly, climate finance must be delivered at scale and delivered on time to make them meaningful and impactful. In Tuvalu, we have legislated for the establishment of the Tuvalu Survival Fund to mobilize resources for urgent climate needs and for long-term survival of affected communities. As we have heard from the chair of the Pacific Island Forum, at the regional level in the Pacific, Pacific leaders have established the Pacific Resilience Facility, which is a Pacific-owned, Pacific-led, and Pacific-managed climate financing facility, bringing finance much closer to communities that need them most. These are practical Pacific-led solutions, and we need international partners to match our ambition and to invest in those Pacific-led solutions, real resources, simpler access modality, and faster delivery. Let me, Madam Moderator, conclude by asking the global community to invest in our sovereign rights to remain on our islands. Because for Tuvalu, climate finance, as we have heard from other speakers, is not charity. It is about our land, our people, our sovereignty, and our very survival. Moderator, as we have heard from the co-hosts of COP31 presidency. Tuvalu will be hosting in the next few weeks the leader segment of the pre-COP31 meeting. And I look forward to hosting some of you leaders in the room in Funafuti in Tuvalu. The opportunity will present us with the chance to allow you leaders to see for yourself the extent of our vulnerability to climate change, particularly sea level rise, and to also showcase our own Tuvalu homegrown adaptation measure to enhance the resilience of our coastlines and to allow our people to remain in the islands that our ancestors for many generations called home. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:46:39]:

Prime Minister, and thanks to all of our panelists. Thank you. And now we will move to the next group of leaders once we do a quick setup. like to invite our next group of leaders to the stage. His Excellency, Mr. Naqama, Lala Lavu, President of the Republic of Fiji. His Excellency, Mr. Matthew Whale, Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands. His Excellency, Mr. Arin Palak, Vice President of the Federated States of Micronesia. Um and honorable Doctor Goodwin who is the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, but speaking on behalf of CARICOM. And I'm going to start with the President of the Republic of Fiji. Sir, Fiji and the Pacific have been powerful voices for keeping 1.5 within reach and for climate justice. As Fiji prepares to host the pre-COP, what must countries come prepared to do to ensure COP31 delivers accelerated action for those on the front lines of the climate crisis.


Fiji · President [1:49:25]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator. And just before I provide the response to the question, I'd like to acknowledge the Assistant Secretary General, Selwyn Hart, and since the Secretary General is not here and just to acknowledge the their presence here today even though they have left the embass and not forgetting all the leaders that have participated including the President of Turkey the Australian Prime Minister Mr. Albanese and the the rest that have participated. Thank you, Madam Moderator. You know, the initial response that I will provide is, yes, Secretary-General, we've responded to your call for us to attend here, even though it's not easy to come up the ramp right to be at this platform, but all in all, the journey has not been easy for Fiji. It's quite a long one, like my neighbors from the Pacific as well, and other parts of the world. And the reason why I came, put it in proper perspective, madam, is because my office, though it does not govern, but it carries something older, the honor, the hopes, and the character of the Fijian people. Above that voice stands only the Almighty God, the Creator. and before whom each of us will answer for how we've cared for his creation. Madam, I will answer plainly. We come prepared to deliver what has already been promised. From the outset, by 2050, the fish available to each Fijian is projected to fall by nearly a quarter, from the 41 kilograms a year to about 31. And more than half of that loss comes from climate change. Nearly a third of the world's tuna is caught in Pacific waters, and it's moving east into the high seas. More than a quarter of our people live within a kilometer of the shore. Six of our communities have already moved. Two more are moving now. And half a degree is not a rounding error. For us, it is the difference between adaptation and relocation. I know the world's eyes are on the Gulf, and Fiji prays for peace over there. But consider the arithmetic. Closing of one state is costing the world economy some $2 trillion a year, and a ceasefire can end it. More than 3 billion people live in places highly vulnerable to climate change. No ceasefire will end that. Carbon we burn today stays in the sky for centuries. The atmosphere does not negotiate. we have a leader coming to Fiji, to Tuvalu, and Antillea, we ask for three things. First, bring national plans that close the gap 1.5. Submit your NDC if we have not. Strengthen it if it still points above 2 degrees. So is your plan to transition away from fossil fuels. And we all agreed, as we all agreed in Dubai. Second, bring money that arrives. The $300 billion goal, the roadmap to $1.3 trillion must become disbursement schedules and not communicates. Adaptation finance must triple, as agreed to in Bali. The loss and damage fund must be filled, not merely opened. And all of it must be within reach, even to the smallest states. Third, bring adaptation. We can measure protected coastlines, secure food, safe water, not workshops that are constantly held. people of the Pacific are not asking for sympathy. We are asking for performance, joint performance in that regard. Very general, you called, and I came. We will welcome your deputy in Fiji and Tuvalu and carry your support to Antalia. Every leader in this room, I say, come to us. stand where the sea is rising, see what our people see every day, let our people say at last that the world showed up. Thank you. Vinaka vakalevu.


UN · USG Global Communications [1:56:01]:

The Prime Minister of Fiji also here. And I'd now like to call on the Vice President of the Federated States of Micronesia, Mr. Aaron Pollack. Mr. Pollack, what is Micronesia doing to build resilience and advance a just energy transition, and what must change to ensure vulnerable island states can access adaptation finance at the scale and on the terms that they need?


Micronesia (Federated States of) · Vice President [1:56:34]:

Well, thank you very much. Excellencies, Secretary General, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. Before I answer your question, I think I'd like to thank the Prime Minister of Australia, who spoke about some of the things we're doing in the Pacific. and also the President of the Republic of Palau, who is the current chair of the Pacific Island Forum. Most, if not all, the Pacific Island countries are members of this forum, and the issues that they have addressed or discussed, I thank them for also vouching for all the Pacific Island countries. For Micronesia, climate change and just energy transition are not separate agendas. They are the same struggle for survival. Our resilience depends on breaking our dependence on imported fossil fuel, and our energy transition is only just if it strengthens our communities and protect our islands. Micronesia is taking action. We are investing in solar, wind, and hydropower, and battery energy storage systems, strengthening grids and improving energy security, expanding early warning, coastal protection, water and food security, and embedding adaptation in our national plans. These are community-led efforts that reduce emissions and build resilience at the same time. But national action cannot outrun a broken financial system. Adaptation finance must change. It must be proportionate to the needs, recognizing that we face some of the highest adaptation costs relative to our population and GDP. It must come at a scale as grants, not debt, that would increase our debt ratio. It must be predictable, flexible, and faster. And these are stated earlier by my friend from Tuvalu. We're no different. Applications and reporting must be simplified. Small island states must have direct access, and small community projects must be eligible.

The multidimensional vulnerability index must unlock and implement financing that aligns with our vulnerabilities. The loss and damage fund must be operationalized with resources that reach frontline communities. And international financial institutions must reform so that resilience is treated as a precondition for survival and not a project. A just energy system transition for SIDS, small island developing states, must also require accessible finance, technology transfer, and capacity building. not new dependencies. The international community must now deliver finance on the terms and our survivals that our survivals demand. I appreciate the comments made earlier on, clarifications made earlier on some of these programs. But I'd like to just share some of the challenges we have with respect to financing. I have been to Tuvalu. I've been to Solomon Islands. I've been to Palau, right next door. I've been to Fiji. And some of the problems I'm sharing here are common to all our communities in the Pacific. I thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:02:00]:

That, thank you very much, Vice President Micronesia, which just made a good segue to the Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands. And also for all of you to look at your shared challenges and again, adapting worsening climate impacts, require sustained investment for you and the Solomon Islands too. So what is your country doing to build resilience What must change to ensure vulnerable island states can access adaptation finance at the scale and on the terms that you need?


Solomon Islands · Prime Minister [2:02:41]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator. And I do wish to also thank His Excellency, the Secretary-General, for convening this important event. I wish to also acknowledge the President of TACIER, and the Prime Minister of Australia, co-presidents of COP31, and the very good ambition they have put forward for COP31 as an implementation of, I hope, that it will deliver. Just so it is clear, Solomon Islands, as well as Marshalls and Fiji, Tuvalu, Papua New Guinea, many other Pacific Island states did not cause this crisis. I think that's a point that ought to be clear. We don't want to guilt trip anybody. If it makes some feel better about making their contributions, that it is charity, we'll give it as charity. We don't think it's charity, but if it makes you feel better for it, give it as charity. In my own electorate, rising seas, king tides and saltwater intrusion have destroyed homes and contaminated freshwater supplies. Cyclones, droughts and extreme rainfall repeatedly drain scarce resources from essential services and development needs, trapping our people and economy in a relentless, stubborn cycle of response and recovery. Our greenhouse gas emissions are negligible, less than 0.015% of global emissions. Yet, we are committed to resilient, low emission development. In our nationally determined contribution, we're targeting emission cuts of 8% with existing measures, 17% with additional measures, up to 34% with front-based removals, forestation, and reforestation. On resilience, we are planning relocation for communities at risk, strengthening early warning systems, building resilient water systems and infrastructure, and investing in climate-smart food systems, fisheries, and marine ecosystems. This raises a basic question. How can vulnerable countries keep paying for climate action when every dollar competes with education, health, food and water security, and infrastructure? The current model does not work. Three things must change. and previous speakers have touched on these, and I will for affirmation repeat. The type of finance must change. Adaptation and loss and damage finance must be grant-based. It is like going to a bank who had just burned down your house to borrow money, and they say, "Well, it's concessional, you'll only pay 1%," when that bank was part of the destruction to your house. Predictable and accessible funding is essential. It should not add to our debt or come with cumbersome access procedures. The way it is delivered must change. It must reach us the forms that meet our national circumstances. Limited and constrained capacities. and must include sustained budget support, funding through government systems. Project by project funding is business as usual, dressed up as a response. It does not match the scale of impacts we face and negates the fact that climate change impacts are not episodic anymore. And who carries the responsibility? Major emitters must cut emissions deeply and quickly, speed up technology transfer, free up financial resources, and act in line with equity and historical responsibility. Madam Moderator, the time for promise is over. I join my Pacific colleagues in calling for the Pacific Resilience Facility to be capitalized. Commitments must become finance, and ambition must become resilience on the ground. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:07:48]:

Thank you, Prime Minister. And now we have the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Honorable Dr. Goodwin Friday. Prime Minister, you speak on behalf of CARICOM. Hurricane Beryl demonstrated how quickly climate disasters can erase years of development progress. And you just heard from Prime Minister Wale that the international financial system must change so vulnerable countries can recover quickly, build greater resilience, and avoid being pushed deeper into debt. So your perspective, how should this happen?


Saint Vincent and the Grenadines · CARICOM · Prime Minister [2:08:30]:

Thank you very much. Madam moderator, and let me also extend my gratitude to Secretary General Guterres for organizing this important forum. To my colleagues on the platform here and those who spoke before, Excellencies, friends, we, on July 1st, and this is directly answering a question, 2024. Climate vulnerability once again manifested itself. As a stark reality for the people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Hurricane Beryl. An unprecedented category four, five hurricane. the worst that has been recorded at that time in the year struck our nation It destroyed over 20% of the gross domestic product of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. And annihilated communities. 98% destruction or damage to buildings in the Southern Grenadines. In ours, our country sustained damage that set back many, many years of progress. It's not news. The crisis did not end, however, when the wind subsided. The deeper injustice is that the climate disaster is treated as a domestic borrowing event, converting natural and external shocks into a compounding burden of debt. We experienced that. Such that today the debt to GDP ratio in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has exceeded over 110%. And now nearly 40% of every dollar of current revenue is spent on servicing debt. That is money that cannot be invested in resilient infrastructure, in climate adaptation, and sustainable development goals. Therefore, what we need from the international community is adaptation. You have heard it from my colleagues. It is not a mystery what is required. So what I say is not a revelation, but it bears repeating so that it lands in the right places and troubles the ears of those who are charged with making the decisions that we all know are necessary. We need more, much more than grant and highly concession and financing. Small island developing states should not have to increase their debt to protect themselves from a climate crisis that they did not cause. Unfortunately, that is what they are forced to do. Climate resilient debt clauses must become a standard part across multilateral, bilateral, and commercial sovereign lending. The debt service pauses activated following hurricane barrel in my country demonstrate their value. Such clauses must be standardized including two-year suspension periods. Following qualifying disasters. Without credit downgrades. Or default penalties. Second, Concessional finance must reflect vulnerability, not income alone. The multidimensional vulnerability index should inform lending decisions across multilateral and regional developmental institutions, ensuring that climate-exposed small island developing states are not excluded from essential supports. Third, the fund for responding to loss and damage must be adequately capitalized, with finance delivered primarily through grant financing. Countries contributing less than 0.2% of global emissions should not be required to incur additional commercial debt to rebuild from climate destruction. Consider the scale of the problem. The fund has attracted only about 822 million US dollars in pledges. Hurricane Melissa alone that struck Jamaica, the damage far exceeded the amount of money that has been pledged in the loss and damage fund. Fourth, we have abundant solar, wind, and geothermal resources. What we lack is affordable capital, modern grids, and sufficient storage. For us, This transition is not only reducing emissions. It is about energy security. It is about reducing fossil fuels imports, saving foreign exchange and lowering energy costs. We need the international community to match our actions, help us adapt. Make climate finance simpler and faster, as we have heard. Help us protect our oceans and reduce the cost of financing our energy transition without pushing vulnerable countries further into debt. In the Caribbean, we have been doing our part. In Saint Lucia, Approximately $30 million US has been invested in replacing critical water transmission infrastructure. In Dominica, US $26 million in climate resilience program has been instituted. In Belize and Trinidad and Tobago, they are investing US $27 million in early warning systems. Jamaica, has formalized the US $36 million rural water program. And Dominica has commissioned a groundbreaking 10-megawatt geothermal plant, the first in the Eastern Caribbean. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, my own country, we are exploring also geothermal energy. Our first attempt failed, but following Dominica's example, we are going to try again. We have also exploring wave energy and solar power. As ways of reducing even further our minimal carbon footprint. But also of ensuring energy security. We may be small island states. But we are large ocean states. The oceans support our economies. Ford security. tourism, biodiversity, and our quality of life. It also helps to regulate global climate by absorbing much of the excess heat. And a significant share of carbon dioxide that we produce. The ocean is getting warmer. And more acidic. And this is damaging our coral reefs. Fisheries and marine ecosystems. Protecting the Caribbean Sea. Is both a Caribbean responsibility, and a global interest. I wish, therefore, to conclude that the international financial architecture must be modernized to meet the 21st century realities. Resilience cannot be built on unsustainable debt and climate justice cannot remain merely an aspiration. Frontline nations must not be left to confront rising seas and mounting debt on their own. That strangles progress, limits the enjoyment of a better standard of living. I wish now to extend to my colleague from Micronesia, he says he's visited Palau and other places. I want to invite you to visit Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. We have similar concerns and similar problems. Thank you very much, God bless.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:19:15]:

Distinguished panelists, thank you so much for your very moving and inspiring interventions. Thank you. I would now like to invite our next group of leaders from subnational governments to the stage. The mayor of Freetown, Yvonne Aki-Sawyer, the mayor of Boston, Michelle Wu, global ambassador for the Global Covenant of Mayors, Anne Hidalgo, and the governor of California, Gavin Newsom.


Speaker 44 [2:21:50]:

I'll be right there.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:21:52]:

All right. Well, we'll get started with Mayor Aki Sawyer, the mayor of Freetown, Sierra Leone, as a committed climate leader representing Freetown, as well as a global network of mayors. You tell us about the pressures cities are facing as climate impacts worsen, and also how you are working to deliver solutions.


Sierra Leone · Mayor [2:22:16]:

Thank you very much. Excellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. Let me start with Freetown. When the rain comes, there are communities in our city who ask, will the hillsides hold? Will the roads remain passable? Will water reach our homes? For many families, these are not hypothetical questions. These are questions of safety, of livelihoods, and ultimately of life itself. And communities in Freetown are not alone. As the co-chair of C40 Cities, I'm acutely aware that communities and cities around the world are grappling with the devastating consequences of climate change. Cities are facing more intense flooding, extreme heat, coastal threats, water insecurity and damage to essential infrastructure as we've heard from so many of the speakers early on today. The deadly floods in Nepal that we just heard firsthand from the foreign minister to extreme heat in Morocco and Western Europe are just some of the examples that have made this summer the summer of climate evidence. The world's ocean are heating up at record levels. And the super El Nino, which is ongoing and is expected to become more severe by the end of the year, is already estimated, predicted to result in a loss of up to $20 billion in Africa alone. City leaders and local authorities are at the front line of this climate breakdown. often serving as first responders when disasters strike, but they're also capable and are already delivering solutions, both in terms of mitigation and adaptation. Our data shows us at C40 that 75% of our cities are reducing emissions faster than the national governments, but of course, in support of C40. For example, Latin American mayors took the lead in shifting from diesel to electric buses. And last month, Latin America reached the historical milestone of 10,000 e-buses in operation. In Freetown, we're restoring hillsides and wetlands, expanding nature-based solutions that can prevent floods, landslides, and protect against extreme weather. These examples abound right across C40 cities and other cities. Cities stand in solidarity with national governments, multilateral organizations, civil society, the private sector, indigenous peoples and communities committed to action as we strive collectively to minimize the period of the overshoot over 1.5 degrees and to ensure that the energy transition is a just one. But for cities to act with greater speed and efficiency, they require finance, a theme, I think, of this entire afternoon. By 2030, urban climate finance needed is estimated at $4.5 trillion annually, while current finance available is less than 20% of that requirement. And the distribution is deeply unequal. Excluding China, cities in the global south, which I represent, receive less than 15% of that urban climate finance, and two thirds of it are loans. At the same time, less than 2% of the urban climate finance goes towards adaptation, even though adaptation is what many of our communities need most urgently. These are not financial statistics. They represent homes exposed to flooding, families facing extreme heat, businesses losing income, and communities confronting risks that they did very little to create. They also represent lives that could be protected through early warning systems, through resilient infrastructure and investment in nature-based solutions. So the solutions are there, but we cannot rely on distant promises when people face imminent danger. Climate action must be collective, national government, local government, private sector, communities. It must be sustained and it must be delivered now. C40 cities are leading by setting ambitious goals, delivering practical solutions, and holding ourselves accountable through a yearly offer of action. But mayors need the authority and the financial resources to match our responsibilities. The current financing gap must be closed. Climate finance must reach the cities most exposed to risk, with far greater investment in adaptation than alongside mitigation. If national governments, multilateral banks, and climate funds remove the barriers that prevent cities, particularly cities in the global south, from accessing the finance they need, the global community will be better placed to limit the 1.5 overshoot and protect our citizens. Mayors are ready to lead. Mayors are already acting. We are already delivering, and we're already showing what is possible. We ask national governments and global institutions to support that leadership, because the communities we represent are not interested, are not able to wait for long-term aspiration. We need lives to be protected today. The time to invest in resilient cities is not tomorrow. The time is now. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:29:03]:

Thank you, Mayor, and also for speaking on behalf of C4 Cities so powerfully. And I'd also just like to acknowledge the governor of Lagos, Governor Sanwo-Olu is on the stage, and I will come to you soon. But first, I'm going to turn to the mayor of Boston, Massachusetts, Michelle Wu. Mayor, you have said fighting climate change provides a generational opportunity to create good paying jobs, more affordable energy, cleaner air, and safer streets. Who wouldn't want that? As mayor, what steps are you taking to deliver these opportunities for the people of Boston? And why should other cities follow your lead?


United States of America · Mayor [2:29:42]:

Thank you so much. Distinguished guests, your excellencies, fellow leaders in local, state, and global governance, thank you so much for your leadership, and good afternoon to all. I bring greetings from the city of Boston, the cradle of liberty and the birthplace of America. More than 250 years ago, American independence took its first breaths in our hills and along our harbor. And we are proud to carry that legacy for our country, to create the common good, to fight for our shared future. Boston is home to America's first public schools, first public park, public library, public subway, Our city has led in every major movement for progress in this country. And today, our innovators, artists, activists, and institutions are working to cure cancer, tackle climate change, and change the trajectory of our future. I also greet you today as the mom of three kids and the first mom elected mayor of Boston. Now, my kids don't know much about mRNA or microgrids, but they love sledding in the snow. They love splashing in a gentle spring rain, begging for ice cream after a beautiful summer day outside, and tasting that crunch of a fresh apple picked right off the tree. But the parks where they play are sometimes flooded by seawater, even on sunny days. In the summer, I worry about sending them out in the heat or having to watch for that color of the sky when it signals that there are wildfires ravaging our neighbors to the west or up to the north. Families and cities are on the front lines of the climate emergency. But as mayor, I've learned that climate action is not a call for sacrifice. The climate crisis is our charge to make life better tomorrow by building a better today. Cities like Boston are proving that climate solutions can mean giving our communities more, more jobs, more affordable energy, cleaner air, healthier buildings, a fuller life. Boston became the first city in this country to require in our zoning code that new large buildings must be carbon neutral from the day they open. We train our young people for clean energy jobs, and we developed a citywide electricity purchasing program that provides cleaner energy while saving our residents money. And we are doing this hand in hand with other cities and local governments to accelerate our actions and to deepen our impact. I'm very proud to be part of the organization that Mayor Akhter Sawyer is leading, C40. Our cities collectively represent 900 million people. Three quarters are going faster than their national governments in cutting emissions. And as a group, we are cutting emissions five times faster than the global average per capita. While our federal government fights foreign wars over fossil fuels, cities like Boston are using the power we have at home-- the sun, the wind, geothermal, energy that is clean and abundant, and resources that lower costs and create jobs. In Boston, we are no longer dumping tea in Boston Harbor, but we are harnessing the waves through thermal energy networks to power our future. Every day we wait makes the climate crisis harder to solve. But cities are proving that every day we act, we have an opportunity to make our world better, not just more sustainable, but more affordable, healthier, and more livable for generations to come. 250 years ago, the people of Boston went door to door asking one neighbor at a time to believe that a better future was possible. Today, I stand before you as mayor of that city and as a mother determined for a better future for all our children. We share the earth with 8 billion people, and each of us has a place that makes us gaze in wonder at the world, a special tree, the sunrise from the mountaintop, a secret beach, a trail through the woods. As we consume more and produce faster, our convenience comes at a great cost. Forests being cleared, oceans polluted, temperatures rising. The climate crisis can feel so daunting. But Boston and cities around the world are coming together to do more and go faster for our shared future. This moment is an extraordinary opportunity. to share our love for the places and the people who make us who we are. A better future is ours to build together. Thank you for your leadership.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:34:57]:

Mayor Wolf, that inspiring speech. I now turn to the governor of Lagos State, Governor Samuel Olu. You are the governor of the largest urban area on the African continent, and your state also faces severe climate change threats, including floods, rising sea levels, and extreme urban heat. Tell us what steps you are taking to protect your population and why international cooperation is so important for states like yours.


Nigeria · Governor [2:35:31]:

Thank you very much, Madam Modritter, Your Excellencies, my colleagues on the podium. Thank you very much. And I've learned a lot even listening to the two earlier comments. For Lagos, climate action, it's about turning ambition into real opportunity. It's about protecting our people. It's about strengthening our economy. And it's about building a more resilient and purposeful state for generations to come. Lagos Like you've said, it's home to over 22 million Nigerians, and it's indeed the second largest in terms of GDP, subnational in the continent of Africa. It's a major engine of growth, and it's our country's commercial economic nerve center. And so for us, climate action, it's not separate from development. They actually go hand in hand. It's central to how we build our future, and the future of young Lagosians that represent about 65 to 70% under 25 age, which are the better part of the future that we're all craving for. And at this state, we believe that states and regions have particularly important roles to play. But for us to move ambition into reality, for us to grow into delivery, we need investment, that must be critical, that must be swift, and that must be actionable. We believe that states and regions need access to affordable, long-term finance that really could help turn strong plans into infrastructure that are real, that will be on the ground. And so we need development finance institutions, we need real investors, we need private sectors, to see the opportunity in climate investment in emerging economy, in emerging market like us as real investment. Because indeed, an investment, the largest subnational in Africa is an investment into the African continent, which by the way, is the only unidentified fully part of the world that we're all talking about today. And because we believe that the opportunity are enormous, but we're also not just asking for just partners or for donors, we're asking for real partners. Partners can understand what our issues are, what our problems are, and we can work that with them. And so we see the conversation around building cleaner transportation infrastructure, more resilient infrastructure, we see them as opportunity that will create new industries, new jobs for these young people, which are indeed the youngest population in the entire world. We see that we can improve the quality of life. We can grow our citizens more, and we can build economies that are not only resilient, but economies that are ready to take the future. And so my message here is very clear, but it's also very short. Lagos It's not just a state. It's indeed a big region in Africa. It's a subnational government that is ready to deliver, to deliver to these young, intelligent, purposeful, ready to go, people that can indeed change the world that we see tomorrow. And so our ambition is here. We also, as government, have the responsibility and increasingly so. And so we believe that we can create solutions that will help solve all of these challenges that we see. Lagos on a daily basis, for example, generates over 15,000 metric tons of waste. You know, we're moving close to seven, eight million people from one part of a city to another. But we're creating all of this, even in a resilient and prosperous environment. And so we need to build real partnership, we need to mobilize investment, And we need to be able to deliver at scale. We believe that's why we're here. That's why this conversation has to be taken very seriously. Thank you very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:40:14]:

I'm going to next ask Ms. Hidalgo, who was the former mayor of Paris and is now the global ambassador for the Global Covenant of Mayors. You have long championed bold urban climate action, and those of us who have traveled to Paris have seen it for ourselves. You've also delivered results, and sometimes in despite of resistance. And in this era of political fragmentation, how can cities help keep climate action a political priority?


Global Covenant of Mayors · Global Ambassador [2:40:53]:

Thank you, Excellencies, dear colleagues, and dear friends. Today, I join you as global ambassador for the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, a network bringing together more than 14,000 cities around the world. Cities coordinating internationally on climate action are making a real difference, but we know that is not enough on its own. Responding to the climate crisis requires collaboration, consensus between cities and national governments. We cannot afford to work in silos. We need a multi-level cities and regions inclusive approach because alignment across level of government is precisely what keeps climate action politically alive and financially credible. When I was mayor of Paris, the Olympic Games showed us what is possible when different levels of governments Alongside the private sector and labor unions align around one objective with a clear deadline. The games gave Paris the political moment, the financial alignment, and the public support to move towards implementation of the Paris Agreement goals at a fraction of the time. Climate change demands exactly this kind of alignment, multi-level cooperation. As Mayor and Co-Chair of C40, Yvonne Aki-Sauer mentioned, access to climate finance is critical for subnational governments. When local and national government authorities move and work together, They create the regulatory certainty and positive signals that make also the private sector and multilateral development banks and international climate funds comfortable enough to finance a solution cities already hold. This is why I'm committed to CHAM today with the mayors and the global government of mayor, the Coalition for High Ambition Multi-level Partnership for Climate Action launched at COP28 in Dubai. Today, with the 78 signatories country, Spain joined this group two days ago. plus the European Union part of this initiative, CHAMP is now one of the most powerful platforms for proving the value of this multi-level, multi-actor method. Some of these signatory countries must now step up as a champion with the local governments proving that multi-level governance guarantees effective implementation of the Paris climate goals. I will also invite the UN to ensure that mechanism are in place so that multi-level delivery is explicitly reflected in NDC implementation plans, because it is one of the clearest signal of successful climate delivery. Thank you so much.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:44:56]:

Well, Ambassador and former Mayor Hidalgo, I would now like to ask the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom. If California were a country, it would be the fourth largest economy in the world. That's right. And it has shown that climate action, innovation, and economic growth can go hand in hand. So how will California accelerate this transition and also use its influence to help drive climate action nationally and also globally?


United States of America · Governor [2:45:30]:

Thank you for the question. I'll get to that question in a moment. But first, I just want to thank all of you for being here. Thank you for not falling prey to the cynicism, the anxiety that I think all of us feel, picking up the paper, watching TV, listening to the punditry. Thank you for being the antidote to that cynicism, fear, and anxiety. I was here three years ago. It felt very different in the United States. You heard that speech from my president yesterday, but called for a genocide of 93 million people. Nothing normal about that. Nothing normal about this moment. I'm proud to represent, yes, the fourth largest economy in the world, a state larger than 21 state populations combined. I'm proud to represent a state that was the founding state, San Francisco, of the United Nations in 1945. I'm also proud to represent a state that's 27% foreign born, where we practice pluralism. We don't tolerate our diversity, we celebrate our diversity. That's what has allowed us to become the fourth largest economy in the world, but we also have this. to share. We're also the most untrump state in the United States of America. That's important. Because there's probably nothing more important on this topic that you'll hear today. And the imperative of ending Trump's presidency as we know it. And that, my friends, will happen this November. when the Democratic Party takes back the House of Representatives and we finally re-instill what our founding fathers lived and died for. And that's a system of checks and balances in the spirit of the mayor of Boston's remarks. But my remarks are not just in the context of the invasive species, Donald Trump, but in the context of the work that we continue to do despite the headwinds. of people that have their heads in the sand soaked by oil. This is not complicated. The challenge is self evident. And some of us are as dumb as we want to be subsidizing and doubling down on stupid, subsidizing the very problem we're trying to fix. It's not complicated. It's from burning coal and gas and oil. And of course, that's what we're doubling down in the United States, but not in the state of California, that fourth largest economy, California. runs every day on two-thirds clean energy. In fact, so far this year, nine out of 10 days, the fourth largest economy in the world is run on 100% renewable energy. We are past the what and the why. We're past the goal setting. We're in the great implementation. We're in the how business. And we're proving the paradigm that you're not sacrificing your economic future. to change the way you produce and consume energy, quite the contrary. Why is California such a vibrant and diverse and entrepreneurial society? It's because of our rules for risk taking, not recklessness. There is no, forgive us, Elon Musk without California's regulatory system that created the certainty where he can make the investments that ultimately became Tesla. We're proud of the entrepreneurial spirit that is at the heart of our transition to low carbon. That's why we refer to that green growth. 40% GDP growth in the state of California since 2019. No jurisdiction in America and no democratic jurisdiction in the world has grown faster than the state of California as we reduced our greenhouse gas emissions by double digits at the same time. Let's disabuse ourselves else that somehow this gets in the way of economic growth and economic prosperity. So I want to thank the mayors. I was a mayor. Once a mayor, always a mayor. Governor, with respect and love as well, I want to thank the governors. Because if you don't like the way the world looks when you're standing up, stand on your head and go local. State vision, national vision are realized locally. These are not just the dreamers, these are the doers. You're the doers. And all around the globe, We're inspired. It's the power of emulation. Success leaves clues. So I want to conclude as I began with gratitude, respect, appreciation for everyone who is here, not just for themselves, but in the spirit of the 10,000 generations to go back to our creator, that count on us to meet this moment head on, to lean in, to step up. to share not just our formal authority, but to share our moral authority at peril of being judged not to have lived. To all of you, thank you for all the work you've done to get us here, and I look forward to coming back to the United Nations with the fresh air of progress versus the stale air coming out of Washington, D.C. of normalcy. Thank you all very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:50:45]:

Thank you, panel. So I'm going to introduce the next panel. Just wait for them to be able to come. We have Lord Va'afafahi Fa'afafanua, the Prime Minister of Tonga. I think they're meeting and greeting, so I'll continue to introduce the next panel and ask them to make their way to the stage. Her Excellency, Ms. Sara Ajasun, the third Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Ecological Transition of Spain. Panelists, may I ask you to come to the stage? From the Maldives, Her Excellency Ms. Iruthusham Adam, Minister for Foreign Affairs. And from the United Kingdom, the Right Honourable Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs. And from Germany, His Excellency Mr. Karsten Schneider, Federal Minister for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety. Okay, so I will begin with the Prime Minister of Tonga. As a region on the front line of climate impacts, Pacific Island leaders have made Pacific Island Resilience Facility their climate investment priority. As you lead efforts towards an initial $500 million capitalization target, what steps are you taking in the region and what do you need from international partners so that this facility can deliver at the speed and scale required?


Tonga · Prime Minister [2:53:12]:

Your Excellencies, Malau'alele, on behalf of His Majesty the King to both the six and the people of the Kingdom of Tonga, I extend warm greetings from the Pacific. 10 years after the Paris Agreement, the world stands at the brink of reaching 1.5 degrees Celsius. The latest UN Environmental Program report warns that this is no longer a distant prospect, but an imminent reality. For small island developing states like Tonga, every additional fraction of a degree brings greater loss. deeper insecurity, and fewer options for survival. Across our region, stronger cyclones, rising sea levels, prolonged droughts are already placing food, water, and energy security under extreme pressure. We therefore call on the world to invest faster than climate change is changing. For Pacific nations, climate justice requires allocating finance according to vulnerability, and expediting it to those who are facing the greatest risk. Adaptation and mitigation are not competing funding choices. They are inseparable parts of effective climate response. For highly vulnerable Pacific countries, adaptation is a matter of survival. For Tonga, a just transition renewable energy is fundamental to achieving this objective. Dependence on imported fossil fuels exposes us to global shocks. Therefore, renewable energy underpins not only emissions reduction, but also our energy security and future prosperity. The transition must reflect SIDS realities, small island developing states, high costs, small markets, and limited capacity Investment must extend beyond generation to innovative technologies, resilient grids, battery energy storage systems, emergency backup systems. We're exploring geothermal power as a move to secure a more resilient energy mix. So understanding our structural reality is why accelerated investment across the climate-ocean nexus is an imperative. When the United Nations Secretary-General visited Tonga in 2024, he issued a global SOS: Save our Seas. Conservation is therefore vital to safeguarding our blue Pacific Ocean, but we must also recognize its value and responsibly harness its potential as a foundation for greater resilience and self-sufficiency. Tonga will advance this ambition by hosting the inaugural Polynesian Ocean Summit next year in May. We need genuine partnerships to scale. The climate problem requires international cooperation more than ever. In this respect, International financing systems remain too difficult to access, too slow to respond, and too distant from the communities it's intended to support. Therefore, the Pacific Resilience Facility is our response from the Pacific. PRF is the Pacific-led and Pacific-owned regional financing institution designed to deliver accessible and predictable lines financed directly. It turns our political commitments into practical action at the last mile, where climate change is already affecting homes, livelihoods, and essential infrastructure. As host of the Pacific facility, Tonga is proud to announce that more than $180 million has already been raised. Pacific Island Forum leaders are committed to working with our partners to reach the initial capitalization target of $500 million by COP31. Time is ticking as we advance towards a wider ambition of $1.5 billion. Put simply, the targets are not simply financial figures. They represent safer homes, stronger water systems, resilient energy infrastructure, and greater security for thousands of communities across the Pacific region. I therefore call on all our partners to advocate for, invest in, and help capitalize the Pacific Resiliency Facility, the PRF, as a Pacific-owned financing mechanism. Your support is an investment in Pacific-led solutions, climate justice, and a more secure future for our region. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [2:58:35]:

Prime Minister of Tonga. And I would now like to turn to the Third Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Ecological Transition of Spain. Spain's recent heat and wildfires that we all watched on television and suffered with you underscore the urgency of ending fossil fuel dependence and building resilience. So how will Spain now accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels and strengthen resilience at home, while also helping mobilize finance and international cooperation for developing countries to do the same?


Spain · Third Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Ecological Transition [2:59:12]:

Thank you. Thank you very much. Good afternoon to everyone. For me, it's really a great pleasure to be delivering what is our policy, our message from Spain today in this very important summit. I will deliver my speech in Spanish. So, olas de calor.

Extreme heat waves, record unprecedented temperatures in our oceans and in our Mediterranean Sea. Floods are covering More than, and more than 300,000 hectares affected by the fires, all of this in my country in less than 12 months in my country.

In Spain, we are well aware of the impacts of climate change, but absolutely no one is prepared for a world where temperatures will rise more than 1.5 degrees C. Science has been telling us this for a long time, but now reality is striking us particularly hard, particularly the most vulnerable. In Spain we have committed to a clear green agenda, a responsible agenda, but much more than this. We are focusing on this for our health, security, opportunities, competitiveness, affordable prices for autonomy. This is a commitment to leave behind our addiction to fossil fuels. This is something that has allowed us to curb our dependency and to protect our citizens from the volatility of energy prices. Indeed, Spain is better prepared to face the wars that we are seeing both in Ukraine and Iran now. Why? because neither the sun nor the wind can be blocked by any army and therefore, of course, by any conflict. Setting clear objectives, energy and climate planning over the medium and long term with a stable regulation framework, this bears fruit. In Spain, we already have results that we'd like to share. We've managed to double our renewable capacity over the last eight years. we have around 56% renewable capacity and we have more electricity grids, more storage and of course more electrification. This is an energy system that is not only more sustainable but also more affordable and of course more autonomous. And something that we take very seriously in Spain is that we have harnessed the power of civil society to do all of this. And we have also harnessed a just transition strategy because there is no climate justice without social justice, nor is there social justice without climate justice. Addressing the climate change means, of course, being better prepared for the consequences of that climate change. It means building resilience, integrating adaptation into all of our sectoral policies. It means incorporating nature-based solutions in our cities, in our towns. And I think that the last panel was particularly impressive there. This all needs funding. That's why Spain recently our European partners to include a specific duty on the profits of petroleum and gas companies under the principle of the polluter pays. In international cooperation today, I would also like to highlight Spain's commitment to financing for development through the summit that we had in Seville last year, where we signed the Seville commitment, focusing on the main pillars, mobilizing more national and international resources, reform the debt system to make it more just and transparent. This is something that we put forward, something that we put forward as Spain was the debt for sustainable swaps and also pursuing global fiscal justice and more inclusive governance. And I'll conclude now. I think that we stand at a crucial turning point now, where we need to build bridges, we need to work together, be more ambitious than ever. And today, we think that here today, we need to breathe ambition. And one message I think it's important for all of society is that many more of us are convinced than are not convinced by this. So this roadmap isn't an option, it is the option. because it makes sense. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:04:27]:

So let's see. I would now like to turn to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives. The Maldives have long been a leading voice for small island developing states and calling for adaptation to be prioritized. What must change now to put adaptation at the center of global climate action? and also to turn commitments into concrete protection for vulnerable countries and communities.


Maldives · Minister for Foreign Affairs [3:04:53]:

Greetings from the Maldives, the sunny side of life. Thank you, moderator. Ladies and gentlemen, excellencies, I would like to put it very simply. Three things must change. First, We must close the gap between finance promised and finance delivered for adaptation. Developed countries must meet their existing obligations and deliver the commitments already made through the COP process. There's no substitute for that. Private, blended, and innovative finance can add to public finance. They cannot replace it. And for SIDS, finance must be predictable, accessible, and largely grant-based or highly concessional. Protecting people from climate change should not push countries deeper into debt. Second, we need to move from financing projects to financing resilience. In the Maldives, adaptation means protecting our islands and shorelines, making critical infrastructure stronger, protecting our coral reefs, safeguarding communities and livelihoods. That means resilience must be built into development itself, and finance must reach countries faster. should not spend years navigating complex process to access finance. Third, we must judge adaptation by results on the ground. Let us ask ourselves, are communities safe? is infrastructure stronger? Are livelihoods more secure? Are countries better able to withstand the next shock? That should be the measure of success, not simply how much was pledged or how many projects were approved. And one final point, adaptation is not a substitute for mitigation. There are limits to what any island can adapt to. The more we delay cutting emissions, the harder and more costly adaptation becomes. So at COP31, let us move adaptation from planning to protection. I thank you. Thank you very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:06:55]:

I would now like to turn to the Right Honourable Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, United Kingdom. Mr. Miliband has made significant progress in its domestic energy transition. whilst being an important provider of climate finance to developing countries. So what further actions will you take to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels at home and internationally to scale up climate finance and also mobilize investments for developing countries?


United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland · Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs [3:07:29]:

Well, thank you so much, and it's great to be here. I want to thank the Secretary General for his incredible work on these issues over the last decade. And I also want to say what a pleasure it is to be here with the incoming COP31 presidency, and we look forward to success in Turkey later on this year. Let me make three points to answer your question. The first is about domestic action. I think it's really important to frame domestic action in the right way. This is about the climate crisis and environmental care, but it is about much more than that. It's about energy security, it's about jobs, and it is also about national security too. I hosted an event earlier today with foreign ministers from a range of countries talking about the national security threats we face from climate. In terms of what we are doing domestically within that context, we've had the largest offshore wind auction in the history of Europe. We've got record solar power, record wind power. We're seeing investment in warm homes. We've legislated for a target of 87% reduction in emissions by 2040. We've banned new licenses to explore new oil and gas fields, all within that context of this big argument about how do we get energy security, how do we create the jobs of the future, and how do we do the right things for future generations, and we will push on further, including on the transition away from fossil fuels. Second point, I want to say something about our international responsibilities, and I think it's really important to say that international responsibilities are being fulfilled, yes, because of the demands of justice, yes, because of the demands of international solidarity, but also, frankly, self-interest. Unless we all tackle this problem together, then we are all going to suffer separately from the climate crisis, even more than we are suffering already. To that end, we've been delighted to pledge to the new TFFF, the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, of 400 million pounds, which is an innovation, a great innovation from the COP30 presidency in Brazil. Today, we're announcing an investment of 330 million pounds in the Global Environment Facility, which is a very, very important project, as well as other additional public finance. The broader point I would make, though, and I'm going to be at the annual meetings later on next month in Bangkok is we need more MDB reform to help countries to access finance. Because the points that our colleague from the Maldives made about not just quantity of finance, but quality of finance, access to finance, the balance between grants and loans, the financing of adaptation, these are all incredibly important arguments. And actually, let's be frank, the reform of the international financial system is very, very much a work in progress to meet the demands of climate resilience. The last point I just want to make is a sort of point of optimism, because it's so easy to be pessimistic at these events. The people who want to undermine the project we are talking about and what we are talking about, there are the deniers, there are the delayers who say this problem doesn't exist, there are the delayers People who say, let's do it, but not yet. But then there are also the defeatists. And the defeatists, I think, actually are now a bigger problem than the deniers and the delayers. They're the people who say, well, you've been trying to do this for 30 years, 40 years, and nothing's changed. And so there's no point in even trying. Now, I think it's up to us to tell all the defeatists that they are wrong. Because I actually think this is a shining example of the success of multilateralism. When I left the not very successful Copenhagen Summit 2009, we were heading for a four degree or more world of global warming. Today we're heading for something like a two and a half degree world. Now that's very bad, don't get me wrong, but it is multilateralism, it is countries working together to tackle this problem that has produced the gains that we have. So I think it's very, very important in this context to talk about what we need to do further talk about how we need to act internationally, but also to make this argument that actually multilateralism works. And at a time when it is more under question than it has been for generations, I actually think that the climate efforts that we are making together and the will that I see from countries across the world to tackle this problem should give us confidence and optimism about the future. Thank you so much.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:12:16]:

Secretary of State Miliband, and also for giving us that injection of optimism about multilateralism. I'd now like to turn to His Excellency Mr. Karsten Schneider, Federal Minister of the Environment. He has a very long title. I'll say it again.


Germany · Federal Minister [3:12:30]:

Yeah.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:12:30]:

Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety. Germany is playing a pivotal role in both the energy transition and global climate finance. So what concrete steps are you taking to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels, also while scaling up affordable finance for developing countries?


Germany · Federal Minister for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety [3:12:53]:

Yeah, thanks. Thanks a lot for the question. And I fully agree with my honorable minister colleague from the United Kingdom towards the question of multilateralism. and that these, not only the big debates, but the decisions that were made at COPs, as under the Lago and from Brazil, thanks a lot for that COP, and we are looking forward to the new presidency in Turkey, that this delivers. And I will be concrete. Germany today, the German government, in my absence, but I prepared the proposal, we published national roadmap for and decided about it, a national roadmap for transitioning away from fossil fuels. This was one of the debating points, you know that. And now we took up the debate and decided. As an industrial, as the third biggest industrial country in the world, and there are some deniers in Germany, but we show that we can make it. What is in? Germany has committed by law to becoming climate neutral by 2045. This is just 19 years. This requires systematically phasing out fossil fuels in all sectors. The share of renewable energy in electricity production is growing rapidly, particularly of wind and solar power. It already accounts for around 55% of of Germany's gross electricity consumption and is projected to rise at least to 80% by 2030. Last week in Hamburg, I opened the offshore wind park, 1 gigawatt. 10 years, okay, was too long, but 1 gigawatt and no public funding, private finance. And all the energy is sold for the next years. It works. Together, with the phase out of coal no later than 2038, probably it will be earlier, the decarbonization of the special power plants and the expansion of the electricity grids, this will enable us to achieve a climate-neutral electricity supply. The electrification of energy consumption is also gaining ground. For instance, heat pumps and district heating are replacing oil and gas-based heating systems. 2025 saw more heat pumps sold for the first time in Germany than gas-based heating systems. The ramp-up of electric mobility is gaining momentum in Germany. In August 2026, battery electric passenger cars accounted for over 32% of of newly registered vehicles. And there are another 15% hybrid. So it's close to 50% of all everything. The industry where electrification is economically viable, it should be consistently harnessed. That's where it should be systematically developed. This will enable Germany to significantly reduce imports of fossil fuels and lower its dependence on supply chains vulnerable to geopolitical crisis. The 2026 Climate Action Program presented in March has a total of 67 measures. It will ensure savings of almost 7 billion cubic meters of natural gas and some 4 billion liters of petrol by 2030. We call on all countries worldwide to also accelerate the energy transition. This is the only way we can keep the 1.5 degree target within reach together. At international level, Germany supports the COP 31's presidency's focus on electrification. Good proposal. This is because electrification and transition away from fossil fuels goes hand in hand. To gain broad agreement on a future global electrification target, we must start forging an international alliance with the global south now. COP31 should also deliver an ambitious electrification package with specific implementation steps. The global Electrify Now initiative can play an important role in these efforts. And at the same time, it is important to ensure that transitioning away from fossil fuels remains high on the international agenda. So Germany supports, as I mentioned, the roadmap process of Brazil's COP 30 presidency. We encourage the COP 31 and COP 32 presidencies to continue this process. Now to the international climate finance. As a committed partner, Germany supports developing countries in transitioning away from fossil fuels and strengthening their resilience. this end, we provided and mobilized a total of 1.8 billion euros for international climate finance in 2024. We are also committed to improving the overall framework to set the clear course for investment. This will mobilize more financial resources for transitioning away from fossil fuels and not only Maldives, but all the other countries. You can count on Germany. We stand ready to work with partners from all countries and sectors, and we want to enable countries to chart their own course to energy security and prosperity. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:18:52]:

This distinguished panel for your very powerful statements. Thank you very much. Thank you. Please welcome now Mr. Pascal Donohue, Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer of the World Bank Group.


World Bank Group · Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer [3:19:26]:

So good evening, Secretary General, Excellencies, distinguished leaders. Across every region, people are working to build better lives. They want jobs, they want opportunities for their children, and they want a path out of poverty. At the same time, they face droughts, record heat, severe storms, and floods that can erase years of progress overnight. So this is the central challenge of our time, to create jobs and low carbon prosperity while protecting people from climate impacts that threaten lives, livelihoods, and hard-won development gains. At the World Bank Group, working with all of you, we respond back to this with climate-smart development. For too long, climate action was seen as a cost, a trade-off against growth. But there is no choice between climate and development. Climate-smart development means doing development right. Creating jobs, improving lives, while building economies that are resilient, efficient, competitively, fiscally sound, and built to last. Our research indicates that climate change could cause 260 million jobs at risk by 2050. lost productivity in extreme heat, disrupted schooling, failed infrastructure and rising diseases that keep people out of work. But targeted adoption could create 150 million more and better paid jobs. Our active lending portfolio, funded by the governments that are here today, currently helps 465 million more people become more resilient to climate shocks. This is a 45% increase over the previous year. We've also supported 53 of the world's poorest and most vulnerable countries to strengthen their adaptation and their climate preparedness due to the support that you make available to our work. But as important as this progress is, no institution can meet this challenge alone. And this is why over the last five years, the multilateral development bank system has now delivered $375 billion in climate finance change. The World Bank Group alone has now provided half of this. Over the last fiscal year, we have mobilized a further $48 billion in private capital, private capital, sorry, excuse me, in private capital with climate co-benefits. And in that fiscal year, we delivered $48 billion in climate co-benefits from our own balance sheets. Put all of this together, this is $96 billion of support. But the message from all of this, for all of you is very, very clear that public finance alone will not be enough. Governments, multilateral development banks, we must work together to reduce risk, to strengthen policy, and to build more projects so that private capital can move at scale. So we have so much to do. The World Bank Group stands ready to be your implementation partner, the partner that countries need to bring together financing, analytics, guarantees and private capital to turn plans into results. We need your support to implement your national climate plans, to remove barriers to private investment and to match ambition with finance so that we can deliver at scale against this great challenge. And this is how climate smart development can turn ambition into investment to partner with you to deliver impacts and results for those that we serve at scale. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:23:38]:

Thank you very much to the Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer of the World Bank Group, Mr. Pascal Donohue. And I'd now like to introduce the next group of leaders and ask them to come to the stage. We have His Excellency, Mr. Kalani Kaneko, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. The Honorable D. Ramphal, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of Mauritius. His Excellency, Mr. Jamhur Hidayat, Minister of Environment of Indonesia. His Excellency, Mr. Mohammad Ali Nafti, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia. And His Excellency Maxim Vladimirovich Rihinshkov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus. So I'm going to start with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, sir. As the world enters an era, 1.5 degrees overshoot, the consequences will fall hardest on countries like the Marshall Islands. What does adaptation look like from your perspective and what must be done to ensure that the world supports you in your work while accelerating efforts to bring the temperatures back under 1.5 degrees?


Marshall Islands · Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade [3:25:09]:

Thank you for the great question, Assistant Secretary General, Excellencies. First, allow me to convey sincere apology on behalf of Madam President and Heine. She had very much hope to be here today, but is unfortunately unwell. Let me share with you an example of what adaptation looked like in the Marshall Islands. We have just completed a new seawall It will protect thousands of lives, thousands of people. But the story behind the seawall is telling. It took 10 years, eight years to plan and two years to find financing and to build. Eight years to plan and find financing and two years to build. total of 10 years. And this is the only one of many islands in my country. We do not have this kind of time. Sea walls, resilient agriculture, and health systems. These things are crucial. But they are totally insufficient in the face of unchecked fossil fuels. 1.5 to stay alive has been a rallying cry for small island states and the High Ambition Coalition, which my country convenes with good reasons. Once we go above 1.5, many measures to adapt just won't be feasible, and the loss and damage will be devastating. So the first step in adapting to an era of overshooting or overshoot is by limiting that overshoot. The Pacific has committed to a regional energy strategy to make our region fossil fuel free. Every region should have a roadmap that figures out what barriers are to this transition and all they can turn or torn down. And the next step is money. Our national adaptation plan will cost billions to implement. This is well beyond what our economy can support. Those who think that we can depend on private sector have never experienced the realities of a small island developing state's economy. For us, adaptation depends on grant-based or highly concessional finance that comes quickly and without a million string attached. This should not be impossible. Simplifying procedures, speed up disruptions, put the money in the reach of those of us that need it the most. In the Marshall Islands, we have established the Marshall Islands Resilient and Adaptation Trust Fund, the MIRAT, a one-stop shop for donors to support adaptation and resilience building, led by and for the Marshallese people. I invite donors, let us show how we can make even the most vulnerable countries resilient. But even if we adapt, loss and damage is unavoidable. We see it in the devastation that makes headlines and in insidious changes, the migration of tuna, the king tides that eats away our shores, coral bleaching, The answer must be swift and full restitution. This is the only path to justice in context of an overshoot we did not cause and have the fewest resources to respond to. Assistant Secretary-General, thank you for your extraordinary climate leadership. We must all follow your lead. We must end our dependency on fossil fuels. And we support the communities that are preparing for and dealing with the carnage those fossil fuels have already caused. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:30:26]:

And I am now pleased to ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Honorable D. Ramphal. of Mauritius. Mauritius combines the perspective of a small island developing state with the experience as a regional financial center. How can public and private finance be brought together to scale investment in resilience? And what support is needed from international partners?


Mauritius · Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade [3:30:54]:

Thank you. Let me, first of all, thank the Secretary-General for having convened this important meeting on climate action. There are two parts to this question. One is about setting the right mechanism in our financial sector in order to mobilize private and public finance. And the second part of the question is about getting the support of international partners. I have to say that in this task, it has not been easy for Mauritius. It was a difficult task because we have unfortunately had to pay for the success of, for our own economic success. Well, first of all, according to the latest world report, for us to support our coast, improve water security, and also to support our transition to clean energy, and we need approximately 5.6 billion USD for the next 25 years to fund climate adaptation and green energy initiatives. Now, this is impossible for a small country like Mauritius. And secondly, we are not eligible for concessional finance given our GDP per capita. So luckily, we managed to use our dynamic financial sector as a conduit for private investment into bankable projects that are related to resilience and adaptation. Now, we also shifted our approach from a public led expenditure to a strategy where public capital acts as a catalyst to unlock private investment. So we are trying to pioneer scalable, replicable models of blended finance. We have been working on four strategic pillars for mobilising private sector finance. Firstly, sovereign de-risking mechanism. Secondly, institutional asset activation. Thirdly, sustainable capital markets. And lastly, the modernized public-private partnerships. Now, unlocking these capital flows requires a strong national ecosystem that turns high-level climate commitments into transparent, actionable, market mechanism. So, Mauritius is strengthening this ecosystem by developing comprehensive frameworks, including its national green taxonomy and robust climate change reporting guidelines, with the support of international partners. And secondly, we have embedded climate resilience metrics into the procurement and design stages of public private partnerships Mauritius can help ensure that private concessionaires build and manage public infrastructure able to withstand growing environmental risk while setting a model for sustainable long-term asset management. Now, the second part of the question about the need of support from international partners. Let me say this from the outset. One thing is very clear. Global partners must move beyond outdated aid models to highly concessional financing, long-term credit enhancements, and targeted grants that help absorb the high upfront cost of adaptation. Through international grants, concessional loans, targeted subsidies, blended finance structures, first loss guarantees, and strong public-private partnerships. Small island developing states like Mauritius can improve the risk return profile for private investors. Now, this approach can turn capital-intensive adaptation projects in coastal protection, renewable energy, and climate-smart agriculture from high risk obligations into stable, commercially viable and bankable assets for institutional investors. Our ability and that of all SIDS to deliver this model at speed and scale depends, of course, on predictable and enhanced support from the international community and multilateral financial institutions. Now, before I end, allow me just to give a few examples on how public and private finance are mobilized to fund climate president related projects. First, we created a climate and sustainability fund using a corporate levy and a dedicated national fund. Secondly, we came with the home solar project for individual household. And this shows blended concessional finance in practice. International concessional resources covers half the project cost while the public utility will finance the rest. Therefore, households receive the resulting benefits without bearing the upfront capital cost. Third, we have the Mauritius Renewable Energy Investment Facility, which attracts independent power producers and international investors through streamlined approvals, fiscal incentives, sovereign guarantees, blended finance tools, and a pipeline of bankable projects. Therefore, to conclude, Mauritius, as an established international financial centre with a sound regulatory framework, stands ready to host entities involved in nature and climate entities. We can provide a reliable platform for issues and trading for such activities. Thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:37:49]:

I would now like to ask the Minister of Environment for Indonesia, His Excellency Mr. Jamhar Hidayat. your work, your government has started to work towards a massive 100 gigawatt expansion of renewable energy. So what steps are you taking to turn this ambition into a reality? And also, how can regional and international actors help Indonesia deliver at the scale and speed required to achieve this objective?


Indonesia · Minister of Environment [3:38:19]:

Thank you, Madam Rata. Thank you, Chairs, Excellencies, distinguished delegates. The Paris Agreement provides our compass. Yet as the window to keep 1.5 degrees Celsius within this rapidly narrows, our task is to bridge the gap between global commitments and tangible results, guided by equity and common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities. Under the leadership of President Prabowo Subianto, Indonesia is translating climate ambition into concrete action through our enhanced NDC, Nationally Determined Contribution, and second NDC, charting a pathway toward net zero emissions by 2060 or sooner. For us, climate action must go hand in hand with economic growth, energy security, poverty eradication, and resilience. Our development paradigm is clear. Growth and environmental protection must advance together. To keep 1.5 degree Celsius within reach, Indonesia is accelerating economy-wide action. We are advancing our net zero 2030, reducing emissions from waste and methane, and transforming our industrial sector through two complementary tracks, decarbonizing existing industries and designing new low-carbon industry from the outset. Now, Indonesia constructing the huge plants of electric vehicles that can share within the 300 million population. This transformation will be supported by innovation and responsible deployment of carbon capture, utilization, and storage, drawing on Indonesia's geological formation and growing technological capability. In the energy sector, we are rolling out an ambitious 100 gigawatts solar program within the next three years and directing 70% of new national power capacity. 12S, we also exploring the potencies of our geothermal energy. We are also strengthening energy security through the nationwide implementation of B50 biodiesel. Our transition must be just, orderly, country-led and people-centered, strengthening energy security and affordability, creating decent green jobs and local value, as well as protecting vulnerable communities. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, while Indonesia is mobilizing domestic resources and developing carbon market instruments, Climate finance must be affordable, accessible and predictable and commensurate with the scale of the challenge through national endeavor and international support. We must also scale up support for responding to loss and damage. Vulnerable developing countries need timely, adequate and accessible resources to address the economic and non-economic impact of extreme weather events and slow onset climate change. Adaptation must advance alongside mitigation. As an archipelagic nation, Indonesia is advancing the giant sea wall along Java's northern coast while protecting and restoring mangrove and other coastal ecosystems to safeguard communities, livelihood, and development. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, as we look ahead to COP31 in Antalya, we must demonstrate credible progress in implementing and scaling up the new collective quantified goal. Antalya must also prove that multilateralism can deliver for those most vulnerable to the climate crisis. Indonesia stands ready to deepen partnership that turn climate ambition into genuine development, opportunity, and resilience for all. I thank you.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:42:32]:

Thank you, Your Excellency. And I would now like to turn to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Tunisia. What is Tunisia doing to accelerate the shift towards clean energy and build resilience to climate impacts? And what support do you need from international partners?


Tunisia · Minister of Foreign Affairs [3:42:47]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator. Many thanks. Let me first underline that Tunisia is firmly committed to accelerating the transition towards a low-carbon and climate-resilient development model. while ensuring that climate action supports our development priorities. Indeed, our new national determined contribution 3.0 reflects a significant increase in our climate ambition as we are aiming at reducing our carbon intensity by 62% by 2035 compared with 2012. 2010 levels with half of the ambition of this ambition condition on enhanced international support. Of course, energy is indeed at the heart of this transformation. We are working to improve energy efficiency and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels as we are accelerating the deployment of renewable energy with the objective of reaching 35% renewable energy in our electricity mix by 2030. At the same time, we are strengthening resilience to climate impacts, particularly in water security, agriculture, food systems, and coastal areas, especially in light of the sea water raise threat. Our ambition needs to be matched by the means to fulfill it. Implementing our NDC will certainly need no less than $50 billion. This is why Tunisia is also strengthening its capacity to mobilize climate finance. in this vein, on October 7th, in partnership with UNDP, we will convene a national workshop in the International Diplomatic Academy in Tunisia, aiming at facilitating the access to multilateral climate finance, bringing together national stakeholders and development partners to identify practical ways to better mobilize and channel climate finance towards NDC 3.0 priorities. Yet, national efforts alone cannot meet the scale of the challenge. Excellencies, we need our international partners to provide greater access to concessional finance and grants, technology transfer, capacity building, and stronger investment partnerships, particularly for renewable energy and adaptation programs. We also need a financial architecture that is more accessible, predictable, suitable, and responsive to the needs of developing and climate-vulnerable countries. Tunisia is committed, ladies and gentlemen, to assume its charge. What we need is a stronger commitment from our partners to turn climate ambition into investment in concrete actions and climate actions into resilience, sustainable growth, and shared prosperity. I thank you so much.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:46:52]:

Lindsay, and now I'd like to ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, what steps will Belarus take to accelerate the shift towards clean energy and what international cooperation is needed for a just and orderly transition?


Belarus · Minister of Foreign Affairs [3:47:08]:

Thank you, dear Madam Moderator. I would just like to say a few words as to how we characterize the situation that we're in today. Everybody says that climate change represents the greatest challenge of our time. Indeed, we are continuing to see alarming trends in this area, more frequent droughts, forest fires, the drying up of rivers. We see this not only in vulnerable regions of the planet, but also in the center of Europe, which has now become a vulnerable place. And we do need to ask honestly, who created this crisis? The industrial might of the West was built on coal and steel for centuries, first their own, and then through the plunder of colonial countries. It was when the extensive development model exhausted itself, when that happened, Some countries began to manipulate the green agenda and try to curb the development of resource-rich countries of the global majority. And this policy that is completely hypocritical is really accompanied by actions that worsen the situation on our planet. For example, the unfurling of armed conflicts that have a colossal environmental footprint from oil spills and explosions to emissions from military equipment and fires at oil storage facilities. Second, through illegal unilateral sanctions. These impede dozens of countries having access to clean technologies and renewable energy. Thirdly, through boycotting the airspace, for example, of Belarus and Russia, it is making it much more difficult for many countries to travel. It's lengthening routes and therefore increasing planes' carbon footprints. Fourth, through the politicisation of environmental platforms, they're becoming less engaged in addressing real problems and rather are turning into instruments of pressure. If we stop doing this, then it would all be better for our planet. Belarus, nonetheless, is acting. We pay particular focus on our transition to clean energy. We have decreased greenhouse gases by 40% as compared to the 1990s. So over a 36-year period, we've decreased it by 40%. We have a national climate change adaptation plan to 2040. This document sets out systemic measures to protect water resources, to introduce drought-resistant technologies in agriculture and to reduce risk for all sectors of the economy. We are also effectively developing green and nuclear energy. We have a Belarusian nuclear power plant now commissioned that has allowed for an annual reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by more than 7 million tonnes. This is a real contribution to protecting the climate. So we have also had a positive effect of electrifying our public transport system and our railways, and we have a whole project there. Madam moderator, the climate crisis can only be overcome together. We would call upon everyone to work together without double standards to preserve the planet for future generations. I thank you very much.


UN · USG Global Communications [3:51:00]:

Lindsay, and thank you to all the panel members. Thank you, and thank you very much. I am now going to transfer the role of moderator to my colleague, Alison Campbell, who is from the SGC's climate action team, to introduce panelists of the private sector.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [3:51:34]:

Thank you, Melissa. I'd now like to invite our panelists of the private sector to the stage. So we have Sumanth Sinha, founder and chairman and CEO of Renew. Li Jing, co-founder and CEO of the Global Solar Sustainable Alliance. Peter Bakker, president and CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Javier Rodriguez Soler, the global head of sustainability for BBVA. And Robert van de Zee, the representative of the Secretary General for the investment of the assets of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund and on behalf of the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance. Please come to the stage. Thank you. I'm going to start with Sumanth. And India has seen a massive boom in renewable energy, adding more than 44 gigawatts of capacity in 2025 alone. How is the private sector contributing to this boom, and what more do you need to see from international partners to accelerate further?


Renew · Founder, Chairman and CEO [3:53:05]:

Yes, thank you so much, Excellencies, friends, for inviting us to speak at this very important session today. I think it's very important for us to have much deeper collaboration between the private sector, and sovereign nations to make sure that we are able to address the climate change problem as quickly as possible. The Indian renewable energy story is actually quite a success story. We have achieved our Paris Agreement targets five years ahead of target. We had committed that we would have 50% fossil fuels. of our energy mix by 2030. We achieved this target in 2025, so five years ahead of the number. The second thing is that in 2025, we also added 44 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity, which is in fact the second largest in the world. And I think we've made a rapid progress in capacity additions. And this year, we are likely to add more than 60 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity. The important thing to note is that of this capacity, almost 15 gigawatts is distributed renewable energy capacity, which means either rooftop solar schemes or solar pumps. And these distributed solar capacity additions essentially touch the common man. So the common person in India is very deeply involved with the clean energy transition, and they are being impacted on a personal basis by it as well. I would say the private sector has been playing an extremely important role in making this transition happen. We've helped in creating the entire ecosystem from generation to transmission, and now increasingly to storage. A very important factor is that we've also raised over the last 10 to 15 years, close to $300 billion of capital from private sources to fund this expansion. And I think that is something that is highly underrated. We've also pioneered a number of very new and innovative schemes. For example, in India, our company pioneered the round-the-clock power solutions, where we found solutions between wind, solar, and storage. And we were able to provide solutions which were almost base-load kind of power solutions at prices that were cheaper than the alternative, which was coal-based power. And this has actually allowed us now to increase the penetration of renewables in the grid quite substantially. So we've really been able to sculpt the power supply into the grid using renewable energy. So if you ask us to supply power in the morning and in the evening peaks using renewable energy, that is something that we can now do in the private sector. The other thing is that we have also now been working closely with the government to set up a manufacturing ecosystem for clean energy. which includes solar manufacturing, batteries, and other areas of the clean tech value chain. And this is something that we are making a lot of progress on now in terms of setting up to reduce our reliance on imports. And this, in the context of energy security, which is now becoming more and more important, is very critical. I would say the reason we've been able to achieve all of this in India has been because number one of the ambition shown by the Indian government in setting very big targets for all of us to then rally behind and achieve. Number two, we've had some fairly enlightened policy making in the country. There are a number of steps we've done to increase the credit profile of our offtake, to have a single national grid, which has been encouraged for renewable energy utilization. And we've had very, very deep collaboration between the private sector and the government, which I think has been extremely important in making sure that we've been able to collectively work towards achieving this target. Now, as I look forward, while we've achieved 300 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel capacity in the country right now, and looking forward not just in India, but globally, There are several challenges that are now beginning to appear that we have to all deal with collectively. One is we have to all globally now look at how to manage the grid better, how to have more storage in the grid. Number two, how do we increase electrification? And I think the COP31 target of 35 by 35 for electrification is incredibly important. And we must take forward the target of renewable energy to be tripled by 2030. And we have to focus to make sure that the transition remains just and it does touch all the people in the world. And that's something that we at Renew and we in India are definitely working on making sure that this transition that happens is as just as possible. Thank you so much for giving me this time.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [3:57:51]:

Thank you. Thank you very much. And I'll now move on to Li Jing, co-founder and CEO of the Global Solar Sustainable Alliance. Li Jing, solar energy has transformed from an emerging technology into one of the foundations of the global power system, with global capacity now exceeding 3,000 gigawatts. What action do you need to see from governments to unlock the full potential of solar worldwide?


GSSA · Co-Founder and CEO [3:58:20]:

Yes, thank you. Thank you for the question, and good afternoon, everyone. I'm Li Jing, co-founder and CEO of GSSA, Global Solar and Storage Sustainability Alliance. And I joined the solar industry back in 2015, the year of the Paris Agreement. At that time, solar was so expensive, jokingly known as the money printing machine. It was simply out of reach of most of the world. And 10 years on, solar cost has fallen by more than 19%. It has become the light in millions of homes. Solar energy has returned its original value, accessible to all and serving everyone. But today, we are at an important moment at climate action. The world does not take form as its latest action. And last year, together with the industry peer, I launched GSSA. Today, our core members covers 18% of global solar market share. And our mission is super clear. We always deliver clean energy to the world. We must deliver responsible sustainability solution across the entire supply chain. And we face a lot of problems so far. And from my perspective, two issues are most urgent. The first is we must evaluate climate contributions through the whole value chain, not only clean power generation from mining, silicon, cells,

to recycling, any sustainability shortfall will damage the climate value of the entire industry, and we need a traceable, responsible, and inclusive green supply chain. And second, The biggest bottleneck is effective cross-border joint implementation. We have seen too much industry competition, but climate change knows no boundaries. No single company or country can solve global supply chain challenges alone. also face a huge global green talent gap. Target green vocational training is important to bridge this divide and drive a fair, inclusive energy transition. And this is why GSSA green and we need global industry stakeholders to build shared standards and accelerate just transition. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:01:03]:

Thank you very much, Li Jing. I'll now turn to Peter, the President and CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. And Peter, you represent a global network of over 250 leading companies committed to delivering a net zero, nature positive and equitable future. How are these countries contributing to global ambition on climate while also driving sustainability as a key driver of competitiveness?


WBCSD · President and CEO [4:01:29]:

Thank you. And thank you for having business here this afternoon. That is important. The question I get most this week, is sustainability over for business? Given all the geopolitics and economic pressures that are flying around, may be understandable, but the answer is in capital letters, no, it's not. The why has changed, though. The conversation has moved from morality to materiality and now to economization, I call it. There has to be a business case for business to continue to invest. We published the Business Breakthrough Barometer not too long ago, in which 92% of 500 executives globally said this is now a topic of competitiveness. 89% of them said we're investing the same or more in climate action. Three things in that stand out. The first one is, it's now in the core of strategy. The investments in electrification, in regenerative agriculture, in electrification of mobility are scaling up fast. And I compliment the COP31 presidency for the selection of priority areas in the Global Business Forum, because they are precisely where the business cases exist. The second thing you hear is we need to change the supply chains. In almost every business, more than 80% of emissions are scope three outside of the borders of companies themselves. We need to collaborate globally. And the third thing that stands out is The rapid rise of attention for physical risks, the resilience agenda, and the last summer, obviously, has made that all too clear. The biggest concern amongst business leaders is a disorderly transition, where it's either poorly planned or poorly coordinated between countries. I had my board meeting earlier this week, 18 CEOs of some of the largest companies in the world. The conclusion at the end of that was we need multilateralism to work. So from a business point of view, the business case is clear. The solutions are there. We now need to rapidly scale up implementation. My ask to this room, and thank you again for the opportunity to speak to you, is we need to build a standing channel from one COP to the next, where we will co-design solutions co-design policies. And in that context, again, my congratulations and gratitude to the COP31 presidency, because this year, you'll have the High-Level Leaders Summit and the Global Business Summit at the same time, and I hear even a joint dinner. So looking forward to that. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:04:30]:

Thank you very much, Peter. And now turn to Javier Rodriguez-Sala, the global head of sustainability at BBVA. Javier, investment in clean energy stands at 2.2 trillion and is growing year on year. What is driving this growth and what do investors and banks need to see from governments to scale up investments further and especially in developing markets?


BBVA · Global Head of Sustainability [4:04:54]:

Thank you very much. And yes, I also bring good news from the private sector. I want to talk not only in the name of BBVA, but in the name of the whole private financial community. And as my colleagues previously said, the solutions are there. Fatih Birol, a few hours ago, commented that the most economic, the best in emissions, and the best in energy security for investment, for growth in all the countries are precisely renewables. The objective for this COP, for the coming COP in Turkey, it's going to be 35, 35, 35% of all energy being provided by electricity in year 2035. That is possible. That is already happening very, very fast in some areas in the world, like the United States, like Europe, like Australia, like the UK. But it needs to happen worldwide. It needs to happen also in emerging markets. What we ask as a private sector, as the financial sector that mobilizes all the money, private money to be invested in decarbonization is for countries, particularly emerging markets governments, to make it easier, to remove barriers for the money to flow, for the investments to flow to this type of investments that I repeat are the most profitable, the best in emissions and the best in energy security. So that's why my ask in the name of the whole private financial sector to this audience, which is let's remove barriers, let's make it easy. The money is waiting to be invested. Let's do it. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:06:32]:

Thank you very much, Javier. I'll now turn to finish off the panel to Robert van de Zee. Robert, the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance was launched at the Secretary General's 2019 climate summit. with 12 members and today the alliance has 85 asset owner members with over 9 trillion assets under management. Can you tell us why asset owners remain committed to transitioning their portfolios to net zero and the opportunity they see in doing so?


Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance · Co-Chair, Steering Group [4:07:01]:

Thank you very much, Excellencies, most committed members of this list of participants of the summit. You're still here, and we have some good news from the business sector and from the financial services sector. I head up the Pension Fund of the United Nations, but I'm here in capacity as the co-chair of the steering group of the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance. And the asset owners, of course, are long-term investors looking at systemic risk and financial risk. and have taken on board climate risk now for quite some time. And the focus and the commitment to support climate developments have not changed by asset owners. I think the asset owners are probably the most committed segment of the financial services segment. We continue to provide services as the alliance in rigorous net zero framework with specific methodologies, accountabilities for the 85 signatories to target setting reporting, and we have a platform for peer collaboration, knowledge sharing and collective action. For example, we are pleased to host at the Pension Fund this morning a meeting of the Alliance. The UN Pension Fund itself, of course, under the leadership of the Secretary General, has climate targets on portfolio decarbonization, climate engagement, and climate solutions. And ahead of schedule in the five years from 2019 to 2024, we reduced our carbon footprint by 48%, outperforming the target by 40% of 2025. We have now increased the target to 60% for 2030. But with climate change, there are also many new investment opportunities, as some of the panelists have already described. We at the pension fund manage about $112 billion, have invested some $5 billion in climate solutions. The alliance as a whole, with the sort of 9.5 trillion, has invested $787 billion in 2025 in climate solutions, which is 40% more than just two years earlier. So as we've heard, throughout today, the cost reductions in technology, the renewable energy generally being the cheapest source of energy depending where you are in the world, the enabling infrastructure, grids, storage, electrification, they are all facilitating to business cases and financial investment cases for climate. As I said, asset owners are long-term investors. We remain committed because the net zero and climate considerations about mitigation of portfolio risks of long-term investors like pension funds like ourselves. There's a significant pipeline of investable opportunities and the investment criterias of risk and return are solid as we of course have our fiduciary duties to our stakeholders. Thanks very much.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:09:55]:

Thank you very much and thank you to all our panelists from the private sector. Thank you. Thank you.


Speaker 91 [4:09:59]:

Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:10:04]:

So we now move on to our last list of member state representatives and we apologize that we know that there are a lot of member states who wish to speak today and we're conscious that not everybody was able to, but for the final member state panel before we move to civil society, please let me welcome to the stage Honourable Malombo Haimbe, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for Zambia. Mr. David Mania, Ministry of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment of South Africa. Her Excellency Barbara Rudozi, Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry of Zimbabwe. His Excellency Mr. Sun Wei, the Deputy Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China. And for France, the Special Ambassador for Climate Change, Benoit Ferraco. Honourable Mulombo, I am B, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for Zambia. Given that Zambia has experienced significant climate impacts that are affecting both agriculture and power generation, what measures are you taking to build resilience and what cooperation do you need from international partners?


Zambia · Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation [4:11:31]:

Thank you very much for that question. Let me begin by commending the Secretary-General for convening this important event in view of the need for governments and stakeholders to respond decisively to the existential threat posed by climate change. Our response is to build resilience into development itself. We are mainstreaming adaptation across national and sectoral plans, integrated development plans at district level, and through the Constituency Development Fund at community level, underpinned by our National Adaptation Plan 2025 to 2035. We are also moving from reactive response to anticipatory action. More than 200 automated weather stations are providing real-time information and supporting location-specific advisories to over 1 million farmers. In agriculture, we are scaling up conservation farming, agroforestry, drought-tolerant crops, and livestock breeds solar power delegation, and agricultural insurance. In energy, we are diversifying away from dependence on hydropower, including through private solar and geothermal investment. Our presidential solar initiative targets 1,000 megawatts of solar power by the end of 2026. For Zambia, building resilience is not only about adapting to climate impact. The global transition itself presents an opportunity to transform our economy, particularly by leveraging our critical mineral endowment to build domestic productive capacity, industrialize, and create jobs. It is in this context that I wish to emphasize that as the demand for critical minerals grows, our ambition under the Grow Zambia agenda is not simply to produce more, but to create greater value at home through investment, value addition, industrialization, and jobs. We therefore welcome the Country Support Mechanism as an important initiative designed to support that ambition. We need international cooperation through accessible grant and concession of climate finance Technology transfer, capacity building and investment partnerships are also key. Developing countries should not have to deepen already constrained debt burdens simply to build resilience to climate impacts. For Zambia, therefore, a just transition must also be a resilient and development-centered transition protecting livelihoods while enabling us to transform agriculture, secure our energy system, industrialize, and create jobs. I thank you for your kind attention.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:14:49]:

Thank you to the Honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs for Zambia. I'll now turn to Her Excellency, Barbara Ruodzi, the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry for Zimbabwe. And Zimbabwe is already experiencing increasingly severe droughts, floods, and heat, with major implications for food security, water security, and livelihoods. What will it take to move from responding to these shocks to building resilience systematically into the country's development and investment priorities?


Zimbabwe · Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry [4:15:20]:

Thank you very much. And let me begin by thanking the Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, and his team for the work that they are doing towards climate change. issues. Let me also thank you for inviting Zimbabwe to contribute to the timely discussion and for this question that speaks directly into Zimbabwe climate action priorities. I would like to reaffirm Zimbabwe's commitment to the objectives of the Paris Agreement as demonstrated by our third generation nationally determined contribution through which we have scaled up both climate change mitigation and adaptation ambition, committing to a 40% per capita greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2035. Your Excellencies, current global energy transition presents an important opportunity to build a more equitable model of development. Zimbabwe, like many other developing countries, is endowed with critical energy transition minerals underpinning low carbon development and from which developing countries would derive a fair share of economic value. This should translate to increased revenue for accelerated sustainable development and scaled up investment in the lives and livelihoods of our people. The objective and the vision of our president for his people and the country is to have an upper middle income society by 2030. For this to happen, and for everything else that speaks to climate change to happen, there is need to greater investment in local processing, beneficiation, and value chains of our minerals. The transition cannot replicate historically extractive patterns that transferred value away from its sources. In this regard, Zimbabwe is honored to be part of this cohort. to the UN country support mechanism on critical energy transition minerals designed to support resource rich countries in deriving optimum benefit across the critical minerals value chain. We thank the Secretary General again for advancing this concrete step towards correcting historical extractive practices. For Zimbabwe, adaptation and resilience building across the sectors of agriculture, water infrastructure, as well as tourism, as it is also affected by climate change, are also critical components for climate action. For our agriculture and for food security, we are one of the first countries in Africa to introduce agriculture climate proofing. that we introduced about six to seven years ago, and we are seeing the benefits to that. And food security is assured to our people, and we are working towards improving year in and year out so that the people of Zimbabwe are food secure. The tripling in adaptation finance by 2030 therefore remains imperative for the developing countries. Let me also say, is the government of Zimbabwe continues to demonstrate its commitment to the value added position for our minerals. We focus on achieving the same upper middle income society by 2030 for using our minerals that we have prohibited the exports of lithium ore in our country and introducing a value addition for the exports in creating jobs for our own people and we are seeing the results of us of this as it was introduced last year, end of last year in 2025. In February 2026, we have seen private sector coming to invest in a plant for lithium sulphate. And just this April, we have seen those tangible results in giving us more than 16,000 tons of lithium sulfate, which is worth close to 100 million US dollars. So we want to thank again the Secretary General and to say Zimbabwe is committed to all the solutions that they are bringing on the table and to wanting to work with United Nations on mitigation and adaptation of climate change. I thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:20:33]:

Thank you, Excellency, and thank you for highlighting the work that you're doing with the United Nations on critical energy transition minerals. I'll now turn to Mr. David Mania, the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment of South Africa. South Africa has been at the forefront of efforts to deliver a just energy transition. What are you doing to accelerate renewable energy and transmission while protecting workers and communities? And what further international cooperation is needed to deliver the transition at the scale and the speed South Africa needs?


South Africa · Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment [4:21:05]:

Thank you. Your Excellency, South Africa's just energy transition is underpinned by a $98 billion investment plan called JETIP. Jet IP focuses on key sectors and portfolios that would require institutional support, capacity building, pipeline development, as well as concessional and grant finance mobilization over the period from 2023 to 2027. The key sectors are the electricity, green hydrogen, and the new energy vehicle value chains. The JET-IP includes building the required skills base, supporting municipal distributors in upgrading and modernizing their distribution grids, and addressing the need for economic diversification and support to workers and communities at risk. plan is located within the context of a much broader and ambitious structural electricity reform program, including the unbundling of the national energy utility, the establishment of a wholesale market in electricity, and the increased involvement of the private sector in energy generation and in transmission grid build-out. A credit guarantee vehicle of 550 million US dollars has been secured to support private investments under the independent transmission program. But as with many African countries, the perceptions of risk from the international finance community, and hence the high costs of capital, is a major inhibitor. as is the declining levels of grant finance that are constraining just transition initiatives from being implemented at a sufficient scale to achieve systemic and widespread impact. To enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of matching financing with the project pipeline, South Africa has established the JET funding platform. to solve a critical market gap, ensuring that grants and catalytic capital directly reaches impactful, JET-aligned, community-based projects. To date, the JET funding platform has matched 230 million rand in grants to nine projects, which have the potential to create between 8,500 and 10,500 jobs. To this end, we also need to ensure that international climate finance flows are structured to support communities and workers at risk. The JET Skilling Employment Project is underway, targeting 10,000 youth to be skilled and placed in public infrastructure projects in provinces and municipalities. In conclusion, Excellencies, South Africa stands ready to work together with other nations of the world to ensure that just transition pathways as key enablers of climate action encompass a whole of society approach to achieve sustainable development and to create economic opportunities and to reduce poverty as we head towards COP31 in Turkey. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:25:02]:

Thank you, Minister. now turn to His Excellency Mr. Sun Wei, the Deputy Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China. Ambassador, in the face of growing challenges posed by climate change, how can the international community further strengthen climate action, advance a just and orderly energy transition, and promote green development?


China · Deputy Permanent Representative [4:25:23]:

Thank you very much, Madam Moderator. First of all, I would like to thank Secretary-General for convening this very important meeting. And of course, we commend my good friend, Mr. Hart, Special Envoy for Climate Change, and his team's very excellent and hard work. I would like now to switch to Chinese. Please use your earphones, colleagues.

Distinguished leaders, ladies and gentlemen, this year has witnessed frequent extreme weather events. Climate change is turning from a future crisis into a present challenge. In view of the question raised by the moderator, I would like to share four points. First, global climate action must be advanced. In the face of climate disasters, humanity belongs to the community of shared future for mankind. Only through solidarity and collaboration can we safeguard our common future. We must adhere to true multilateralism, fully implement UNFCCC and its Paris Agreement, ensure that actions do not stop, efforts do not weaken, and stick to low-carbon green development. Second. capacity for climate adaptation must be strengthened. Developing countries are particularly vulnerable in the face of climate risks. Strengthening adaptation capability is a pressing task. All states should take adaptation as a priority, actively carry out international cooperation in such areas as early warning, risk assessment, and disaster prevention and reduction. work toward the goal of tripling adaptation finance by 2035 and enhance climate resilience of the developing countries. Third, transformation of the energy mix must be accelerated. This is an effective way to improve energy security, climate action, and economic development. All states should, based on their national conditions and endowment in natural resources, promote energy transition in a just, orderly, and equitable manner. Critical minerals are a key to energy transition. All states should strengthen cooperation to build a governance system on critical minerals that is fair, reasonable, open, inclusive, green, clean, and mutually beneficial with win-win results. Fourth, financial support must be increased. Developed countries should earnestly fulfill their funding obligations and provide developing countries with adequate financial resources. MDBs and the private sector, among others, should increase climate investment and financing to enable climate actions by developing countries. All states should improve the rapid disbursement mechanism for the loss and damage fund to better meet the emergency and disaster relief needs of the developing countries. Ladies and gentlemen, following President Xi Jinping's guide on ecological civilization, China has injected strong impetus into global climate governance and low carbon green development. As of July 2026, China's cumulative installed capacity for renewable energy reached 2.479 billion kilowatts, roughly 45% of the global total. 40% of our electricity consumption is green electricity. China's intelligent meteorological early warning solution, MAZU, has been deployed in multiple countries to help them enhance their climate adaptation capabilities. China has carried out green energy cooperation with more than 100 countries and regions. Under the framework of South-South cooperation, China has signed 58 MOUs on climate change with 45 developing countries to provide other developing countries with the best possible support. Ladies and gentlemen, as President Xi Jinping has pointed out, we should honor commitments through concrete actions. actions, work together to write a new chapter in global climate governance. China stands ready to work with all parties to jointly address climate change, share the benefits of green development, build a green and beautiful world, and create a better future for humanity. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:30:24]:

Thank you, Ambassador, for sharing those perspectives and examples from China. I'll now turn to Benoit Ferraco, France's Ambassador for Climate Negotiations, Decarbonized Energies and Climate Risk Prevention. Ambassador, France has set out a national roadmap to transition away from fossil fuels and played an important role as a provider and supporter of ambitious climate action. What steps are you taking to deliver on your roadmap whilst also scaling up climate finance to support developing countries?


France · Special Ambassador for Climate Change [4:30:55]:

Thank you, thank you, Alice. I'm so happy to be here with you today.

As my colleague from China will now speak in French, so I will invite you to use your headsets.

Everywhere throughout the world, we see that France and every country are affected by climate disasters. Given this, it's clear that we have to speed up moving away from fossil fuels. And that is why France is very much looking forward to the two roadmaps proposed by the COP30 presidency, because they help us to clarify things and help us to implement the decisions that we've already taken together at COP28. And that is why France was one of the first countries in the world to publish in April 2026 a roadmap to move away from fossil fuels with a very clear objective, the end of coal. And then I very much welcome those who've welcomed these roadmaps. These roadmaps are very important because they help us to predict the future. And this is what the Paris Agreement says. It calls upon us to clarify. And it was one of the we want to be one of the key electro states in the world. We have about 80% thanks to nuclear energy and green energy. So decarbonize. And this is the strategy. This is the desire of the roadmap that we want, and we want to harness our energy independence. We want each year to bring in through our clean energy hundreds of thousands of dollars that would help us to invest in renewable and nuclear energy. And that is why I would call upon all of our partners to develop their own national roadmaps to move on from fossil energy. And it's within that, with that in mind, that France has engaged with its partners, South Africa, who is here with me on the panel, with Vietnam, with Senegal, with Indonesia, partnerships. And we're very proud that we have about 2.6 billion euros invested in projects to have a fair transition for workers in all of these different areas. But we really need to make the most of this transition with the belief that thanks to our roadmap, we will move forward. We will make progress in this global competition for clean energy. Planning is key, but we must note today that these efforts are not universally shared. Today, unfortunately, about 40 contributions have not yet been presented by states and this is absolutely crucial part of the Paris Agreement. I would call upon all those parties who have not yet done so to make their nationally determined contributions as soon as possible before COP31 and this should be an opportunity to bolster our work on metal waste that is absolutely crucial. We can't have such a discharge because the fossil energy is just going straight into the atmosphere. But we do have enormous needs. And so if we're wasting energy, wasting energy is absolutely terrible. And that is why at COP31, we need to translate into real action the words that have been put forward into Ali Abiye, the Secretary General. Now, something that is of concern to all of us is financing. We need lucidly to look at our financial architecture. 10 years after the Paris Agreement, flows to various different countries is going to be 136 billion. It was supposed to be by 2024. Now, I do understand that this is the intention of the Turkish presidency to resolve issues, but there are pending issues regarding the cost of capital and access to financing. We want to work very specifically with African leaders, and this is why the French president announced a commitment to finance losses guarantees. And the African Development Bank is going to be involved in this. So billions of dollars of private investment should be unlocked, and this is something that's currently lagging behind. It is high time furthermore for the major emitters, and some are doing this, to commit more to climate, in particular for the most vulnerable. If we do not manage to reduce our emissions, we're not going to be able to finance adaptation, but this needs to be collective. It is a question of justice and solidarity. For example, early warning systems. Technology is in place, we know how to detect climate disasters upstream. So therefore, I would call upon all major emitters to support the Secretary General's call to develop early warning systems, to invest, to ensure that everyone on the planet can be warned upstream of a disaster. France is prepared to work with all of you to make this decade the decade of resilience and action and solidarity, I think.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:37:01]:

Thank you, Ambassador, and thank you, Excellencies, for sharing your perspectives and your examples of action and cooperation. I would now like to welcome to the stage a group of civil society leaders. So please welcome to the stage Farzana Farooq Jummu, the youth representative from the Youth Advisory Group, Mohamed Adow, the founder of The Power Shift Africa, Anne Yellema, Executive Director of 350.org, Hindou Ibrahim, the UN SDG Advocate and President of the Association of Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad, and Omar Faruk, General Secretary of the Federation of Somali Trade Unions. Please come up to the stage and take your place at the podiums. Zana, please allow me to start with you. Young people will live longest with the consequences of the decisions being made today. What are young leaders doing to ensure that you are not simply being listened to, but are genuinely influencing climate decisions, and what do you need to see from leaders?


Youth Advisory Group · Youth Representative [4:38:58]:

Thank you so much for staying with us. I'm standing here as a youth advocate from Bangladesh, but more than that, I'm here as a reminder that more than 50% of world population is under 35. I want to thank the Secretary General for his climate leadership because we as young people always have find him as one of our great ally in climate space. I love how you said young leaders instead of young people, because we as young people are leading this intergenerational dialogue. I agree with you. Our future starts today. Every decision we make here is for us, for our future generation. We are building this influence in many ways. We have moved from mere presence to co-designing negotiation text. We craft decision along with our leaders who sat in this room. We are assisting, advising, and designing policy with our government and for the civil society. We as young people believe in generational knowledge. We are creating programs that carry institutional memory and skill across cycles, so we are not starting from zero every year. We are inviting more and more young people to follow policies and diplomacy, which actually is about our life. Young people is also organizing globally to make sure there is accountability from the UN, from the government, from the civil society, and from the fossil fuel industries. We call it received as gender language, and we are great at investigating the root cause of climate change. In terms of what you asked about The leaders, what you should do for us, is very simple. We want you to invest in youth. You should invest your time, your knowledge, and most importantly, actual money for young people. We want you to take risks. Risks with young ideas, innovation, and hard questions. I promise, hard question brings hard problem solutions. So when we are talking about just transition, this is not just about just energy transition. Just transition means just financial system. Just transition means multidimensional justice, which includes distributive, procedural, and recognitional justice. Just transition means young people as co-architect. Just transition means a future where everyone flourish. And we want you to trust young people to build that future. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:42:27]:

Thank you, Ivana, for your inspiring words and actions as well. And next, I'll turn to Mohamed Adu. Mohamed, Africa has contributed little to the climate crisis while facing some of its most severe consequences. Where do you see the greatest opportunity for African climate leadership, and what do you need to see from others internationally?


Power Shift Africa · Founder [4:42:51]:

Thank you. Firstly, thank you to the UN Secretary-General and to the Climate Action Team for convening us. This is precisely the moment when the UN needs to speak loudly and clearly. Excellencies and distinguished delegates, the climate crisis has not become less dangerous because the politics have become challenging. And so it's great to have a UN Secretary-General prepared to use the authority of the office to confront the climate crisis at a time when governments and powerful, enforcing foreign interests are taking us in the wrong direction. And so for that, I must say thank you to the UN Secretary-General. Excellencies and distinguished guests, We've heard the world is running out of time on climate change. At the same time, Africa is facing a huge development challenge as millions of its people still lack access to reliable access to electricity. Its young population needs jobs, and its countries need faster economic growth. The good thing is Africa can help meet both challenges. We have extraordinary renewable resources. Africa has 60% of the world's best solar resources, yet it receives only around 2% of the global clean energy investment. That is an extraordinary mismatch between opportunity and investment. Africa needs to be recognized. not simply as a continent on the frontline of the climate crisis, but as a place where its solutions can be built at scale. The opportunity is enormous and the window to seize it is now. Across the continent, we're already seeing an energy transformation beginning from the ground up. Solar is becoming cheaper and more accessible. Countries have an enormous potential in wind, geothermal, and other renewables. Renewables are now the cheapest and the fastest source of new power, creating opportunities to expand electricity access, support businesses, create jobs, and drive economic growth. But the opportunity goes much further than generating clean electricity. Africa needs to use clean, affordable energy to industrialize. We need to power factories, process our own resources, manufacture goods, build new green industries, and create jobs for a growing population. That is what African climate leadership should mean, as it uses the transition to a low-carbon economy to accelerate development and raise the standards of living. But we cannot repeat a model in which Africa exports raw materials and imports finished products. The energy transition should help African countries capture more value from their resources and build competitive industries at home. But that requires investment at a scale that Africa cannot provide on its own. But Africa cannot do this with one hand tied behind its back. As the Secretary-General made clear yesterday, we need reform of the international financial system. You need effective debt relief and action to stop illicit financial flows, draining resources from developing countries. These issues are directly connected to the climate transition. The international community needs to tackle the cost of capital. We've had this a number of times. That is a scandal of justice, injustice in this process. We need to tackle an unfair financial architecture that makes it far more expensive to build renewable energy in Africa than in richer countries. And African countries together with vulnerable countries can help build global cooperation frameworks and mechanisms needed to change this and deliver just transition that is orderly, fair and financed for people in developing countries such as the proposed fossil fuel treaty and the transition away from fossil fuels. Roadmap that has been developed. If the world wants to Africa to accelerate its clean energy transition, then the financial system has to make that possible and mechanisms of cooperation have to change. And friends, climate justice also means finance for adaptation and loss and damage for countries already suffering impacts they did almost nothing to cause. Africa should have the resources to protect communities, strengthen infrastructure and build economies that can withstand these impacts. In conclusion, Excellencies, my message is, Africa is not asking the world to come and rescue it. We are asking the world to stop putting obstacles in the way of Africa building the clean energy future that the whole world needs. We want to turn our renewable energy resources into reliable electricity. We want to use that electricity to power industries, create jobs, and build businesses. We want African countries to manufacture more of what they currently import and capture more value from the resources they already possess. And we want to do that while helping the world meet its climate goals. Africa does not lack climate ambition, sunlight, or solutions. What it lacks is a fair financial system that allows us to turn those advantages into prosperity. And let's together make that happen. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:48:52]:

Thank you, Mohammed, for highlighting Africa's leadership and need for climate justice. I'll now turn to Anne Yellema, the executive director of 350.org. Anne, civil society movements have called for climate justice and accountability and helped put climate right at the top of leaders' agendas. At this stage of the climate crisis, where can citizen movements exert the greatest pressure for the fastest action?


350.org · Executive Director [4:49:20]:

Thank you. Your Excellency, distinguished guests, we have heard many times today that the question is no longer whether we should end our addiction to fossil fuels, or even if we can. The challenge now is to do it fast enough to stem the tide of destruction and death while we still can, and to do it in a just and equitable way that creates opportunity and prosperity for everyone, as Muhammad has so powerfully outlined. This demands vision and courage from national and local leaders, but it also needs countries to move together. Yet, since as civil society, our job is to speak frankly, let me name the elephant that is still hiding in this room, despite the fact that there are very few other people left in the room. International cooperation on climate has become as gridlocked and fractious as the streets of Manhattan outside this building today, despite the tireless efforts of Secretary General Guterres, ASG Hart, and many others in this room and outside of this room. In this situation, I think that there are two things that civil society can move forward in this moment that will help to break the impasse and strengthen the hands of our elected leaders to take bolder action. First, citizens must hold fossil fuel companies to account and demand that governments make polluters pay. It is not right that these companies keep pocketing enormous sums, $25 billion a day, every day, for the past half a century. while leaving the public to pay for the harms that they have known full well that they are causing. As so many speakers today have told us, climate disasters and mounting costs of adaptation are pushing many governments deep into debt distress, forcing cuts to vital public services and sustainable development goals, and driving families, women in particular, into poverty and hunger. Taxing the excess profits of the fossil fuel industry is the fairest way to raise the public funds needed to address these increasingly urgent financial challenges, while also fixing the broken system that incentivizes fossil fuel companies to keep expanding production by allowing them to privatize vast gains while socializing even greater harms. Second, it is time to demand affordable clean energy as a right for all and not as a privilege. Burning endless amounts of scarce, globally traded commodities is actually ludicrously, exorbitantly expensive as a way to power your economy. And that's why many governments spend a big chunk of their budgets on subsidies to try to make energy cheaper for consumers and businesses. But even with those trillions in taxpayer subsidies going to fossil energy every year, the fossil-based energy system, according to research by the Rockefeller Foundation, has left almost 4 billion people unable to access or afford enough power to lift themselves and their communities out of poverty. So citizens should demand that governments support and scale up bottom-up renewable energy revolution that Mohammed spoke about by supporting, by shifting those subsidies, those fossil fuel subsidies to 100% renewable solutions that will provide abundant, reliable energy to all regardless of income and make energy poverty a thing of the past, creating health and wealth for all. In a situation like we are today, we For every fraction of a degree matters. So too, every voice is needed. In times as politically challenging as these, citizens' demands for accountability and their hopes for a better and safer future are the most powerful lever that we have. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:53:53]:

Thank you, and for your continued advocacy. Thank you. I'll now turn to Hindou Ibrahim. advocate, SDG advocate and president of the Association of Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad. Hindu, indigenous peoples hold generations of knowledge about protecting ecosystems and adapting to changing environments. What more needs to be done to move beyond consulting indigenous communities and instead recognizing them as leaders and decision makers?


Association of Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad · UN SDG Advocate and President [4:54:25]:

Thank you, moderator. Firstly, may I request everyone please congratulate, applaud the SD, the DSD, and all the climate team by putting people in the planet in the center of all their decision, please. Then I would like to thank everyone in this room that is paid to listen the voice of people. When we speak about climate in room like this, we often speak in numbers, 1.5 degrees, billions of dollars, ton of emissions, and disease. But I come from a community where climate change is not a number. It is whether there is water for our cattles, whether there is pastures tomorrow, or whether a family can remain on the land where their ancestors have lived for generations. I am a Bororo indigenous from Chad, and my grandmother taught me something very simple when I was a child. Listen to the land, listen to the wind. Listen to the rain, to the insect, to the plant, to the animals. They tell you when you need to move. They tell you when something is wrong. For generations, this knowledge has helped our people to adapt and to survive. This was a simple tradition for some. But it was a climate knowledge. It was a natural technology that do not need electricity. And today, Indigenous peoples hold enormous knowledge about ecosystem, resilience, adaptation. But too often, we are invited in the climate discussion to tell our history, while someone else make the decision about us. And I think we need to change the cautions. We should stop asking, how can we better consult Indigenous peoples? And start asking, how can we share decision-making power with Indigenous peoples? Because consultation without power can become simply listening without changing anything. We are right holders. We are knowledge holders. We are living with the ecosystem and solution makers. And we are not just a beneficiary waiting for someone to bring us solutions. We are already building solutions in our communities. So power without resources is not enough. We cannot ask indigenous peoples to protect forests, restore land, and adapt to climate change while the money is staying in capital, institutions, and system that rarely reach the communities that do the work. If we trust communities with the responsibility of protecting our ecosystem, we must trust them with the resources to do it. And as we accelerated the gas transition, we must be careful. We are moving away from fossil fuel. We are building renewable energy. We need critical minerals. We are expanding conservation. But every time we make this decision, we should ask three simple questions. Whose land, whose resources, this decision because we cannot build a green future using the same patterns of exclusion and extraction that create this crisis. A transition is not truly just if people are displaced from their homeland without consent. So I will finish there. where I began, with my grandmother. She taught me to listen to land. Today, the land is speaking loudly. Communities in Nepal, in the Sahel, in the Pacific are the first victims. Listen to the land, to the people, and please answer the land. And then give indigenous peoples their power and their resource, and we will act. I thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [4:59:55]:

Thank you, Hindou, for so powerfully and passionately bringing

the leadership of indigenous peoples the meeting. I will now move on to our final speaker on the civil society panel, Omar Faruq, the General Secretary of the Federation of Somali Trade Unions. Omar, the climate transition will ultimately succeed or fail in people's workplaces and communities. What does a genuinely just transition look like for workers, particularly workers in countries already facing economic and climate pressures?


Federation of Somali Trade Unions · General Secretary [5:00:32]:

Thank you, moderator, excellencies, distinguished guests. I would like to thank the UN Secretary-General and his excellent climate team for convening this important climate summit and for bringing member states and key stakeholders, including trade unions and civil society, into these global discussions. Speaking for the global trade union movement, who represent the working masses across the continent and of the ages of the International Trade Union Confederation, a genuinely just transition means that workers, their families and their communities must not pay the price for climate-induced crisis that they did not create. For workers in countries facing poverty, debt, unemployment, conflict, and repeated climate disasters, transition cannot mean losing today's jobs and livelihoods for uncertain promises of future green jobs. It must deliver decent work, labor rights, social protection, skills and safe workplaces. It must also protect women, young people, migrant workers, and the millions of workers in the informal economy that we see day in, day out. Developing countries must receive adequate climate financing, as my colleague is talking about, through grantees, not additional debt burdens. Workers and their trade unionists must have a formal seat and a real voice at the table because they represent the working people. These are the working masses. People-centered climate policies and actions must be shaped through genuine social dialogue, not imposed from above. In other words, we must democratize the discussions and the decisions that we make about climate change and climate action. One point must not be overlooked. A just transition cannot be used as an excuse to delay climate action. Governments must act must cut emissions and move away from fossil fuels fairly while investing in climate-resilient communities and decent green jobs. My country, Somalia, offers a practical example. Through sustained campaigning and social dialogue, we as a trade union movement helped enshrine just transition principles in law, a first for Africa. We also secured their inclusion in our national developmental architecture that we call National Transformation Plan, in our NDC 3.3 as well. If Somalia can take these steps despite enormous economic and climate pressures, other countries can do the same. This commitment must now be fully and judiciously implemented. The other very important point that civil society and organized labor movement can play role is preserving information integrity. Information integrity is very essential. We must protect it so that workers, communities, and the wider world are not misled about the causes of climate change. The solution is required or who should pay the cost. People need accurate information about climate risks, financing, technologies, and how climate policies will affect their lives. Excellencies, disinformation and misinformation create fear, divide communities, and weaken public trust. Journalists are essential to preserving information integrity and holding decision makers accountable. In other words, information integrity is the antidote to climate disinformation. And as a journalist myself, safety of journalists is also very paramount. Several climate reporting journalists or environmental journalists have paid very dear price. They were victimized and targeted because they unearthed uncomfortable truth. They have been the voice of the citizen is they have told the truth that all of us need to hear, but they have paid the ultimate price. So the safety and security of journalists is also very important. I conclude just transition must protect rights. Those rights are human and labor rights, reduce inequality and deliver social justice in a meaningful manner. When organized labor help us shape the transition, it is people-centered. And when it is people-centered, the working people will stand in its way and will support it. They will need it. Thank you very much.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [5:06:11]:

Thank you very much, Omar, for bringing the perspective of workers and communities and journalists. And thank you again to all of the panel for your excellent inputs. Thank you. I will now move to the closing segment, and I will invite COP30 President Ambassador Correia de Lago, the incoming COP31 President, His Excellency Murat Kurum, Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change of Turkey, and Assistant Secretary-General for Climate Action and the Just Transition, Selwyn Hart, to the stage for their concluding remarks. Ambassador Carrero de Lago, you now have the floor.


Brazil · COP30 President [5:08:20]:

Thank you very much. I think everybody thanked Secretary-General Guterres, and he deserves definitely our thanks because his commitment to this agenda has been absolutely extraordinary. And I was so happy to hear his speech yesterday. and we want to listen to him, continue to listen to him as we go ahead until the choice of a new Secretary General and beyond. And I want to thank Selwyn and the team that has been so wonderful in the preparation of COP30 for organizing this very important opportunity. I think that we heard in many of the speeches of the Secretary of the General Assembly, the crisis of multilateralism. But I think it's true that there are so many dimensions that are being pointed. But what we saw in Belling at COP 30 was a demonstration of resistance. and, in fact, strengthening of multilateralism, because we had an agreement that the United States of America had left, and there was a big concern that we wouldn't be able to have consensus on important issues, that other countries could leave the Paris Agreement. And what we saw was all of you united in Bilbao to tell the world that climate is going to continue to be a central issue in multilateralism, and that we are all conscious that this needs the cooperation of everybody. So we saw this symbol of strengthening of multilateralism in Beijing, and I am absolutely sure that under the leadership of my dear friend the Minister from Turkey, my dear Murat, we are going to see the same in Antalya, which will be another demonstration that although we can continue to say multilateralism is in crisis, for climate, we are all united and we want to continue to be together. I think that we have to remember that in Berlin, we also took a very important decision in the Mouchiroun decision, among many important decisions that were mentioned today. We agreed, all of us, by consensus, to have a stronger accent on implementation. It's obvious that the whole world is looking at the negotiations and the negotiations are the essence of COPs. But now we have a mandate from 194 countries to have a much stronger implementation dimension. And this opens extraordinary opportunities, is that under negotiations, we need consensus. And what happened in recent years, the recent COPs have succeeded to close the main negotiations that we committed to do to strengthen Paris and to allow the Paris Agreement to be as effective as possible. So we have the essence of Paris already negotiated so we can implement. What is the difference in the implementation side is that in the implementation side, we don't need consensus. We can have all kinds of coalitions that will pursue the implementation of what we have decided by consensus, all of us countries. And that is why it was very important to see today civil society, to see business, to see subnational governments, these essential actors for the implementation. And we don't need consensus. We can have coalitions that bring extraordinary results. And we can see that in so many dimensions because we heard about methane. We can have coalition. that can reduce, and we know that already, something like 90% of the methane emissions. We have a coalition like the Tropical Forest Forever facility that was launched in Berlin. It's a coalition that is putting together extraordinary resources for conservation of forests that we did not have, and so many other coalitions. So I think that the action agenda is now structured so well because it incorporated the results of the GST. And the Global Stocktake has this advantage. It was a consensus, so we have a mandate, so we can advance in everything that we decided. And we are so excited to see this Action Agenda enriched by the initiatives of Turkey that fit perfectly into the six axes that were presented in Berlin. So I believe that Antalya is going to show how many things we can already do with the decisions we have. It's obvious that we need other decisions and that the negotiations are going to continue to be important, but we have to remember what we can achieve And finally, as was mentioned by some of the speakers, at the end of this year as President of COP, I will present in the first week of November the two roadmaps, one roadmap on fossil fuels and one roadmap on deforestation. Those two roadmaps are based on the mandate that we received in the GST. So they are going to fulfill exactly the wording that we agreed and that we had our consensus in Dubai. And these two roadmaps, I hope, will be well received. And I hope these roadmaps that are an initiative of the Brazilian COP30 presidency, my initiative, but we have to remember this is a mandate that we receive. And I hope it will be an important input for our work preparing the GST2. I think that we cannot forget also that finance is an issue that was raised by basically all the developing countries. And so we are also going to launch a document on implementing the 1.3 trillion of the Bakuto billing that we developed Azerbaijan and Brazil for COP 30, because we heard here developing countries repeated very clearly, it's finance, finance and finance. So I hope that we will keep the spirit of Belen, keep the spirit of Muchido to be able to build with our Turkish presidency a wonderful and splendid and renewed trust in multilateralism, COP, COP 31 in Antalya. Thank you very much.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [5:16:39]:

Thank you, Ambassador, and thank you for your tireless and continued leadership as COP30 President and that of the Government of Brazil. I'll now turn to invite the incoming COP31 President to deliver concluding remarks. Excellency Murak Rum, incoming COP31 President, you have the floor.


Türkiye · Incoming COP31 President [5:17:05]:

Yes, thank you very much, Andre, for what you did and for your remarks. So today we had a very fruitful meeting. So Mr. Secretary General Guterres was here in the beginning. So first of all, I would like to extend my deepest thanks to the government leaders, ministers for coming here, so NGOs being here. I would like to thank each and every one of them for their contributions, for their support to this meeting. Of course, in this process, on one hand, when we are listening to the speakers, the world in an hour, how much emission is emitting, carbon dioxide is emitting? I asked the AI. AI said 6.6 million ton per hour carbon dioxide is being emitted in the world. So during this meeting, approximately in five hours, 33 million tons of carbon dioxide have been emitted. On the 6th of February, 2023, we had an earthquake in our country. And after that earthquake in 11 provinces, the disaster of the century took place. And then under the leadership of our president, His Excellency, Mr. President, we kicked off the rebuilding of the century. And in less than two years, we delivered 455,000 housing units to our people and 23 houses an hour and 550 houses a week. And if you multiply with five, it is like producing 115 houses. So we have seen that energy intensity decreased by 39% in the new building. So they are zero waste compliant and compared to past, they are consuming 39% less energy. They're emitting less carbon dioxide. They're more environmental friendly. They're more livable. So it has such impacts. And now, where will I end up? Because of this, we say implementation. So we have talked enough, we have negotiated, we have made decisions and we have held very important meetings, very important discussions. But now the world is waiting implementation, execution, result, outcome from us. So this bad course, this bad process should be stopped by all of us. The world is waiting for this. And for that reason, we We transferred the flag from Andres, so we transferred their success. So we'll be crowning on to that success and we will be executing their decisions together with our Australian colleagues. And we named our COP implementation COP. And we have our action agenda. We have our objectives target set. And when we have, we will have realized those targets, the emissions in the world, again, will decrease by 20%. when we realize those goals. Six goals. Electrification. So it is 35 by 35 goal for electrification. We will be reducing the increase of waste by half, and we will be increasing the use of circular material by 15%. And energy intensity in buildings, we will be reducing it by 25%. There are six goals. So is it difficult to reach those goals? It's not. So if wanted, anything can be done, we think. Of course, the priorities of Africa and the expectation in Europe may differ, and the need in America and the expectation in Australia, they're all different. We need to evaluate them all together in the same pot. And Everyone's starting point to this process is also different. Think about it. You are born in a country. The conditions of that country cannot be determined by you. But the process following it, the differences, the needs, expectations of that country, by considering all these, we can make progress. We can take steps forward. For a kid in Africa, for a young person in America, or an elderly person in Europe, for all of them, again, we can make this world a livable world. We can show this will all together. This is what we want, with dialogue, consensus, and action. We would like to act. So we would like to listen to anyone, we would like to leave no one behind, we would like to forget nobody. And in this process, we do not want to give up from our speed. And we do not want to compromise justice. Economic structure, development levels of countries, transformation capacities are different. So we need to take steps accordingly. And for that very reason, just in just transition process, rather than one solution or exposing one single solution, we need to have an inclusive and implementable solution which meets the needs of everyone. So here, financial institutions talked and they said, "We are ready." And with Climate Implementation Bridge, those financial institutions in Africa. So we want them to reach those projects of Africa. So we want them to reach fruitful projects by asking AI. I, for example, produced more emissions. AI is also producing emission. Let's use AI, yes, but vis-a-vis climate, we shouldn't turn into a threat. So we need to tidy ourselves up in our lives, in our cities, in our houses. We need to consider, we need to examine all of these and with all these targets and the realization capacity for countries for these goals. Yes, this distance can be fulfilled by finance and technology sharing. and when realizing energy transition, industries, employment, and production and social policies, they have to be taken into consideration comprehensively. Of course, just transition is an obligation where we share burdens, but it should be also seen as a new model of development. Because on one hand, there is development going on. We are writing a new story. So in Strait of Hormuz, in Russia-Ukraine crisis, what we have seen is about our independent security, freedom. So these situations are impacting all these things. For that reason, energy independence of the countries are now national security issues. Every country is dealing with inflation. Why? Because if they invested timely in the past, then if countries were able to produce their energy in their borders, then this crisis wouldn't be this effective today. So women, youth, all workers should be actively involved in this process. This is what we want. And all together, we want to realize this just transition. The discussions of today under all these headings showed us that we need to show this will. We need to demonstrate this will. Every speaker shared their views about this. And we want COP31 a concrete result bearing historical summits rather than where we discuss decisions. And our success in just transition, we will measure it with one single question. So when accelerating transformation, transition by hugging everyone, can we go forward? So Can we handle the needs of everyone? And as COP31 presidency, we to answer this question positively with all parties and with all institutions, we will be, we are ready to work hand in hand. In Antalya, we'll be talking about the importance of just transition, but we will go beyond and under different conditions, how we can realize this. we will be showing a very strong will to this question and we would like to reach an outcome for this. And here I would like to invite all countries to make these decisions in Antalya and to realize this implementation in Antalya. Once again, I would like to extend my gratitude to Mr. Secretary General Selwyn Hart and Andre. Andre is really Andra is giving a great struggle. He is living this. So thank you very much for being here. And I would like to extend my thanks to each and every one of you, dear participants. I would like to express my warmest greetings to all of you. Thank you.


UN · Director, Climate Action Team [5:27:31]:

Thank you, Excellency. Thank you for your clear message of action, implementation, and acceleration towards COP31. Colleagues, Excellencies, thank you for sticking with us to the end. We are now at the end, and I will hand over to the Assistant Secretary General for Climate Action and the Just Transition, Selwyn Hart, to close today's meeting.


UN · ASG Climate Action and Just Transition [5:27:56]:

Thank you so much, Alison, Director of the Climate Action Team and sub-moderator. for Melissa, our very dear colleague and friend. And I first wish to thank these two outstanding diplomats and gentlemen for their leadership, continued leadership and support at a very difficult moment for the climate movement. As Mohammed said in the final panel, the climate crisis is no less dangerous because the politics have become more difficult. And you are leading this process at a moment when the politics might be extremely difficult or somewhat difficult. And I also want to, before getting into the substance and thanking all of you for being here, I want to thank my colleagues across the UN system for their help in support. The conference officers, I know you're tired. I'm sincerely sorry for keeping you so late. Our interpreters, our security colleagues, our colleagues in protocol, you guys are the engine, the technicians, you guys are the engines of the UN. You make this place work and I really want to thank you. You know, we've gone a few hours over time and you're still here. I want to thank our colleagues from Bloomberg Philanthropies as well for helping us to put this creative and crazy idea together and for transforming the Trusteeship Council into a space where we could show and demonstrate that there is a sense of global unity despite the geopolitical divisions and tensions. And last, but by no means least, I want to thank my colleagues who've persevered I don't say suffered because I don't want to be dragged before the Human Rights Council, but who've certainly worked hard, who have shown their commitment and dedication to the cause, who've shown their commitment and dedication to supporting the leadership of the Secretary General. So colleagues from the Climate Action Team, DGC and all of the other colleagues, I really want to thank you for really, really, really continuing to that light of ambition and being so supportive of the leadership and work of the Secretary-General. Today's summit and the solution dialogues that have happened over the course of the last few days have sent a very clear message. that despite the geopolitical tensions, divisions, which have been on full display over the course of the last few days and all of the economic uncertainty that is currently taking place globally, countries in different circumstances, different geographies, north-south, east, west, big, small, rich, poor, as well as civil society, business, subnational leaders, that they are all prepared to work together on a common agenda. And at the heart of this common agenda are three essential elements. To accelerate the pace of the energy transition and to do it in a just and fair and equitable manner. Secondly, to fix finance, to ensure that finance finally goes to the places and to the activities that need it most. Third, and probably even more important, to protect people, to protect people in the era of overshoot. As we know, climate impacts continue to accelerate. And what this summer of many on this stage have called it a summer of truth, a summer of climate chaos, what this summer has shown is that we're all in the same boat. We're all in this together. And protecting people, fixing finance, and accelerating a just and equitable transition is at the heart of the shared agenda that all governments in the Solution Dialogues and at this summit private sector, subnational leaders, and civil society have identified. So Antalya comes at a moment, some say it's a challenging moment, but I nevertheless see it as a moment of opportunity, an opportunity for us to restore trust among each other, a moment for us to ensure that we truly abide by that principle of leaving no one behind. And there's no other country and Minister, I've said this before, Turkey is that bridge between north and south, east and west. So I encourage us as we move towards Antalya, let's do so with a sense of urgency, let's do so with a sense of solidarity. The direction is absolutely clear. Today's events and the solution dialogues have clearly shown us that We're all in this together. The direction is clear. The solutions exist. Now we must deliver. And we must do it together at speed and scale. And we must do it in the way that this moment demands. So thank you, colleagues. It has been a long day, but nevertheless a productive day. And it has definitely helped us to build momentum on the way to what will be an extremely successful COP in Antalya in the next few weeks. So thank you. And, Minister, we look forward to continuing to work with you on the road to Antalya. Thank you.