The Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) stands as a significant international coalition of nations acutely susceptible to the adverse effects of climate change. Currently, it comprises 68 member countries from regions including Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the Pacific, collectively representing about 1.74 billion people. Founded in November 2009 by the Maldives in Male, along with ten other countries, the CVF serves as a platform for South-South cooperation, allowing nations to collaborate in addressing global climate challenges. Leadership within the forum rotates biennially, with Ghana holding the chairmanship for the 2022-2024 period.
The New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) represents a new financial obligation that developed nations are expected to meet annually starting in 2025. This commitment is critical to resolving ongoing global political disputes and ensuring that developing countries receive adequate support to combat and adapt to climate change. The NCQG is an evolution of earlier commitments, such as the pledge made during the 2009 UN climate conference in Copenhagen, where affluent nations agreed to allocate $100 billion annually by 2020 to assist developing countries. However, discrepancies remain, with the OECD reporting $116 billion in climate finance in 2022, while Oxfam argues it was no more than $35 billion.
The upcoming Baku UN Climate Conference, scheduled for November, is poised to be a critical event for negotiating the NCQG and overcoming the current political gridlock in climate action. Achieving consensus has been challenging due to disagreements on terms such as 'quantified,' 'collective,' and 'new.' Developed countries have shown reluctance to commit to specific financial targets.
Prominent climate advocate Mohamed Nasheed has stressed that climate finance should be viewed as a matter of responsibility rather than aid. Nasheed argues that effective climate action requires trillions of dollars in investment, and it's crucial to hold wealthier nations accountable. Despite their resources for geopolitical aims, these nations often cite budget constraints when it comes to climate protection.
The inability to meet financial commitments risks straining relationships between developed and developing nations. To achieve meaningful outcomes at COP-29, the CVF is committed to infusing new ideas and genuine efforts into climate negotiations.
The initiatives of the Climate Vulnerable Forum and the critical discussions at the upcoming Baku conference are vital to tackling the financial and political hurdles of global climate action. These efforts highlight the urgency for substantial investments and the accountability of affluent nations to address the pressing challenges of climate change.
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