Climate change experts have noted with concern how countries in the global south miss out on funding opportunities owing to a lack of adequate knowledge about climate finance.
Climate Finance and Sustainability Division Manager at Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe (IDBZ), Dr Nqobizitha Dube, said there is a lot of money that is available in the climate space but there is not enough knowledge on how to access it.
He was speaking at the recently held Climate Change Carbon Markets and Sustainability Indaba in Bulawayo.
Dr Dube highlighted that people do not understand what happens in the climate space and as a result, they miss out on opportunities to access climate finance.
“For a long time, this is a space that has been closed. It had been a place where a lot of people have not gotten an opportunity to really understand what is happening. A platform like this allows individuals to engage, ask questions and be adequately informed,” he said.
“There are major events that take place in the climate space that are applicable to everyone. From a finance perspective, there is a lot of money in the climate space. Most of this money had been put out not through a process of begging but through a process of demand.
“What this means is that we are owed a climate debt as the global south, and there is a commitment to ensure that US$1 billion is mobilized every year, even though we haven’t reached that particular figure yet. There methodologies of disbursing this money which come through multilateral funds such as green climate fund, the adaptation fund, bilateral partners.”
Dr Dube said it is important for people to understand what type of projects are funded by the financiers and how they can write proposals that will enable them to secure the funds.
“What we need to understand is that we should separate development from climate additionality. Development is the role of the state which is assisted by non-state actors. It is not up to climate finance to deal with issues of development. It is interested in additionality,” Dr Dube said.
“For instance, because of lack of money for feasibility, we can not have certain projects. So climate finance then comes in to fill in that gap for feasibility studies but still leaves the process of the development projects. We thus have to be able to understand how to access this sort of finance and how to write the correct proposals in the right language that is understood by the financiers in such a way that we can deliver the necessary financing for infrastructure- particularly the additionality components of infrastructure.
“Here in Bulawayo we recently had the youth climate fund where with the right training and capacity building young people were able to access about US$1 000 to US$5 000 to start green businesses. Such platforms play a vital role for young people to acquire information on where the money is and what processes to follow to access the money.”
Director Institute of Sustainability Development Finance, Veronica Jakarasi, added that encouraged people to seek information from experts on how they can qualify for the funds.
“If you want to venture into, or you are already in the green climate business, you can approach the experts and find out if you are eligible for that financing. Ask what makes you eligible and the platforms where you can get the sources of that financing,” she said.
“Look into various sectors, for example, what is the nexus between health and climate, between energy and climate, education and climate. Find out who is financing those sectors, what the requirements are and make yourselves eligible for the financing.”
