Green Climate Fund has productive first meeting

The Green Climate Fund’s (GCF) board members met for the first time last weekend in Geneva, Switzerland and began the process of channeling US$100 billion a year to developing countries.

The fund will help support various climate change mitigation and adaptation projects and while the first meeting failed to clarify key decisions, attendees have described the first meeting as productive. Two co-chairs have been nominated but key operational issues have not been addressed and will have to wait until a second meeting in October.

There was hope for more engagement between civil society, the private sector and the board at the first meeting  but this is expected to be realised in October. Concrete decisions regarding the investments the fund is looking for, and how the private sector can be incorporated into their plans, will now form the basis of the Fund's meetings and further progress is expected this year. 

The board has stated that a decision on the host country of the Fund will be a key element of the board’s report to the UN Climate Change Conference at the COP18 meetings in Doha later this year. Germany, Mexico, Namibia, Poland, South Korea and Switzerland are the six countries have shown interest and are under consideration as hosts.

The next board meeting is scheduled for 18-20 October in Songdo, South Korea.