London Hosts Summit to Raise Funds for Climate Change Alleviation in Developing Countries

London, May 24 (EFE).- The City of London -the financial district of the British capital- is hosting a summit on Wednesday in which government representatives, businessmen and institutions discuss ways to raise funds to alleviate the effects of climate change, especially in developing countries.

The Net Zero Delivery summit, scheduled between COP27, which was held in Egypt, and COP28, which will begin in November in the United Arab Emirates, aims to “accelerate the pace of action” against the climate crisis from a “fair and inclusive” perspective. “.

“In the next five years, the world will experience record temperatures, expected to rise by more than one and a half degrees above pre-industrial levels,” Nicholas Lyons, the City’s political officer, warned in his opening speech at the event.

“This increase is expected to be only temporary, but its effects will be long-lasting. For the first time, we will witness what climate inaction implies,” added Lyons, who stressed that these effects will be felt throughout the planet, “not just in the places we thought would be most susceptible to drought, wildfires and flooding.”

“The time for action is now,” said the so-called mayor of the City. “It is estimated that between now and 2050 100 billion dollars (92.7 billion euros) will be needed in sustainable investments,” he detailed.

The Egyptian Finance Minister, Mohamed Maait, pointed out that Africa needs around 3 trillion dollars (2.78 trillion euros) in the next ten years to deal with climate change.

“The increase in food and energy prices, the global economic slowdown, together with the increasing cost caused by the impact of climate change,” have aggravated the situation, in his opinion.

“The task of raising resources has become an increasingly difficult challenge in recent years. The increase in the price of financing in the investment markets, influenced by the upward trend in interest rates in developing economies , has contributed to a significant decline in available funding,” he added.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey stressed that the financial sector has a “huge role to play” in the fight against global warming and the transition to a green economy.

The role of the central entity, he argued, is to ensure that the financial system is resilient to the changes that the climate crisis will cause.

“The transition to ‘net zero’ is a major structural change that requires substantial investment,” said Bailey, who explained that, at the same time, this transition “can help raise the potential growth of the economy.”