IMF-World Bank annual meetings 2023: Did talks advance climate justice?

IMF-World Bank annual meetings 2023: Did talks advance climate justice?

Subject: Environment

Section: International conventions

Context:

• The annual meetings of the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), concluded on October 15, 2023 in Marrakech, Morocco.

Details:

• Global climate investment of at least $4-6 trillion per year is required to achieve the transition to a low-carbon economy.
• World Bank woes:
  • About 60 per cent of the  world’s poor will be living in fragile and conflict-affected countries.
  • World Bank’s vision- “end poverty on a livable planet.”
  • WB’s climate finance has tripled from $11 billion to $39 billion.Direct investments in fossil fuels have been slashed to only $180 million.
  • The WB recently unveiled its Evolution Roadmap (ER), with an emphasis on leveraging private sector money for climate change mitigation and adaptation.
• WB has listed some of the concrete steps to address the crises:
  • Building-in contingencies for countries whose budgets are preoccupied with debt service and disaster relief to prevent ‘fund squeeze’ during crisis
  • Harmonizing macroeconomic standards and procedures globally to cultivate more partnerships and collaboration
  • Mobilizing new financial and debt relief instruments and helping clients move money in their portfolios and focus on resilience.
• Just Energy Transition Implementation Plan (JET-IP):
  • Implemented in South Africa
  •  The JET-IP aims to deliver a finance package from G7 countries to fossil-dependent emerging economies like South Africa to decarbonise and shift to clean energy.
• IMF’s climate strategy include:
  • Assisting high emitting countries’ policy formulation for reducing carbon intensity,
  • assisting vulnerable countries in maintaining financial stability through climate induced shocks,
  • Allocating Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to member countries and creating the Resilience Sustainability Trust for climate focused assistance.
• IMF’s accomplishment in 2023:
  • Increasing basic votes,
  • Establishing a third IMF chair for Sub-Saharan Africa,
  • Lowering IMF surcharges or interest rates, and
  • Improving SDR reallocation.

Source: DownToEarth