JOHANNESBURG — World leaders attending the G20 Summit agreed on Saturday to triple annual climate finance flows to $300 billion by 2035, in what host nation South Africa called a "historic but insufficient" step toward addressing the financing gap that has stalled clean energy transitions in the Global South.
The communiqué, reached after four days of negotiations that extended past midnight on Friday, commits advanced economies to mobilising both public and private finance, with a new transparency mechanism requiring annual reporting on disbursement rather than mere pledging.
What's New
Unlike previous climate finance commitments, the G20 agreement distinguishes between grants, concessional loans, and market-rate loans — a distinction developing nations have demanded for years, arguing that loans counted as "climate finance" effectively increase debt burdens rather than deliver genuine support.
The agreement also establishes a Loss and Damage Finance Facility with an initial capitalisation of $25 billion, designed to compensate vulnerable nations for climate damage that can no longer be adapted to. Critics noted that the $25 billion figure represents a fraction of the hundreds of billions annually that climate scientists estimate will be needed by 2040.
Brazilian President Adriana Costa said the deal was "a floor, not a ceiling," and called for a binding review mechanism before the next COP summit. "The planet will not wait for our next round of negotiations," she said.