[🔴WATCH 🎥] In today’s National Assembly Q&A with ministers in the economic cluster, RISE Mzansi National Assembly Caucus Whip, Makashule Gana, asked the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries, and Environment about reports labeling the climate finance deal from #COP29 as a “joke” and “abysmally poor.”
Watch the exchange below 👇🏾
#RISEInParliament#ForThePeopleByThePeople
Minister. So the climate finance deal that was agreed at the COP 29. Has been described as a travesty of justice, as a joke. As abysmally poor. Do you agree with this characterization? And what does it mean for South Africa and other developing countries who did not cause the climate crisis that we find ourselves in? Thanks very much. Because the honourable Minister. Thank you very much. It is a tangential question, but I will take it. And very importantly it is so that the developing economy countries wanted more money. That was the Africa position, that was the South African position. We did not get as much as we would have wanted to get. But of course if you're going to get money from a source, well you can't actually force it to to pay. So what we did get was the 300 billion per year by 2035. That's specifically from the developed economies to the developing and then. And so $1.3 trillion by 2035 from all sources. So of course we know that's not enough money and we need to crowd in more finance. But very importantly in their deal was that we got in important pieces that were important for South Africa's G2 NZ presidency. So for example, we've been raising the issue of the global financial infrastructure. So what we got into that agreement was that there is attention. Needed to be paid to the cost of capital. We also looking at debt reduction, innovative climate financing and also to make sure that there aren't unilateral measures such as sea bag. Although CBAM isn't specifically mentioned, that is something that we can actually hang a hook on. So no, we do not share the view that it was an abysmal outcome. We always knew it was going to be hard. Also from the developed economies, it's very clear they're moving to the right. And it's more difficult for the governments to get their voters and their populations to pay towards funding to the developing economy countries. So we are aware of the geopolitical complexities. But certainly South Africa's position was that we would not agree to just any deal. We wanted one that was sensible for us, for the region, for Africa. And of course in the broader scheme that was achieved, obviously it's. Ongoing conversations. So we're gonna have conversations now on the global infrastructure during the G20 and then at COP 30, which is going to Brazil next year. So that conversation never ends, but ultimately it was a reasonable outcome. Thank.
