Africa-Press – Ghana. The Minister of Finance Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has taken over from his predecessor Ken Ofori-Atta as the Chair of the V20 committee at the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meetings ongoing in Washington.
The Vulnerable Twenty (V20) Group of Ministers of Finance of the Climate Vulnerable Forum is a group dedicated to cooperation, and initiatives of economies vulnerable to climate change.
During their meeting on Tuesday, April 16, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam called on the V20 countries not to lose sight of the unparalled opportunities for innovation, resilience & collective action, despite unprecedented climate challenges being experienced globally.
IMF/WORLD BANK SPRING MEETINGS
Mr Ken Ofori-Atta on Tuesday delivered the closing address for the 12th Ministerial Dialogue.
He made the presentation in his capacity as Former V20 Chair and currently Senior Presidential Advisor on Finance and Ghana’s Special Envoy on International Investment and Capital Markets.
The Vulnerable Twenty (V20) Group of Ministers of Finance of the Climate Vulnerable Forum is a dedicated cooperation initiative of economies systemically vulnerable to climate change.
The ‘V20Finance Ministers’ in a post on their X platform said “Former V20 Chair H.E. Ken Ofori-Atta, who is now serving in the capacity of Senior Presidential Advisor on Finance and is Ghana’s Special Envoy on International Investment and Capital Markets, delivers the closing address for the Ministerial Dialogue. #IMFMeetings”
The V20 Finance Ministers emphasized the need for a fairer global financial system and proposed several measures to transform the international financial architecture.
Portions of their Communiqué said “We, the Ministers and Senior Representatives of the V20 Finance Ministers of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) from Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Middle East, and the Pacific, met in Washington, D.C. United States of America on 16 April 2024, during the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group to discuss, agree, and deploy national, regional, and global strategies to unlock growth and prosperity through innovations in climate finance and debt.
“As of this year, the CVF-V20 is an intergovernmental group headquartered in the Africa Trade House, Accra, Ghana. The membership spans 68 economies, representing a population of 1.74 billion people, contributing to 6.55 percent (equivalent to USD3.8 trillion) of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Despite V20 economies representing 21.5 percent of the global population, the V20 accounts for around four (4) percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
“We reiterate that the widening adaptation finance gap underscores the urgency of immediate action in light of substantial and increasing climate-induced losses. The Climate Vulnerable Economies Loss Report estimated that V20 economies have lost approximately USD525 billion over the last 20 years (2000-2019) due to the impact of climate change on temperature and precipitation patterns. In other words, the V20 economies and their people would have been 20 percent wealthier today if not for climate change.”
Below is the full V20 Ministerial Dialogue XII Communiqué
Unlocking Growth and Prosperity through Innovations in Climate Finance and Debt
Adopted on 16 April 2024, Washington D.C
Ofori-Atta delivers closing address for 12th Ministerial Dialogue at IMF, World Bank Spring Meeting in Washington
We, the Ministers and Senior Representatives of the V20 Finance Ministers of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) from Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Middle East, and the Pacific, met in Washington, D.C. United States of America on 16 April 2024, during the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group to discuss, agree, and deploy national, regional, and global strategies to unlock growth and prosperity through innovations in climate finance and debt.
As of this year, the CVF-V20 is an intergovernmental group headquartered in the Africa Trade House, Accra, Ghana. The membership spans 68 economies, representing a population of 1.74 billion people, contributing to 6.55 percent (equivalent to USD3.8 trillion) of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Despite V20 economies representing 21.5 percent of the global population, the V20 accounts for around four (4) percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
We reiterate that the widening adaptation finance gap underscores the urgency of immediate action in light of substantial and increasing climate-induced losses. The Climate Vulnerable Economies Loss Report estimated that V20 economies have lost approximately USD525 billion over the last 20 years (2000-2019) due to the impact of climate change on temperature and precipitation patterns. In other words, the V20 economies and their people would have been 20 percent wealthier today if not for climate change.
High levels of external sovereign debt and debt service across the V20 economies are crowding out the ability of governments to make the investments required to achieve their climate change and development goals. Not only is tighter fiscal space associated with climate vulnerability but also climate-vulnerable economies continue to face higher costs of borrowing which only fuels a vicious debt cycle where no one wins. In developing countries, the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are off track with 30 percent of targets stalled or reversed and 50 percent categorised as insufficient or weak, including hunger and poverty targets. Elevated global interest rates worsen the already limited fiscal space of heavily indebted and climate-vulnerable economies. Almost all V20 countries face private sector capital market interest rates that are higher than projected growth rates for 2028. The V20’s total external public and publicly guaranteed debt amounts to USD946.7 billion. External debt servicing is expected to escalate to USD122.1 billion in 2024, from USD78.6 billion five (5) years ago. V20 members are expected to pay USD904.7 billion in debt service over 2022-2030. Eight (8) countries spend over 20 percent of their tax revenue servicing external debt. Debt levels of 18 V20 countries will most likely be unsustainable if they continue to borrow at the rate they have been doing from international capital markets.
Recalling the past 11 communiqués, including the Accra-to-Marrakech Agenda (A2M), the Bridgetown Initiative, the Nairobi Declaration, the SDG Stimulus, and the international financial reform direction shared by the leaders from Africa, the V20 Finance Ministers reiterated their commitment to safeguard 1.5°C in the Paris Agreement. It is the safest and technically viable option in temperature thresholds, and also because it means all countries would have to contribute – even the smallest of members upholding equity. Otherwise, we will all fail our people. Yet, today, our ability to help win this global fight against climate change is increasingly impaired due to Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) that are not aligned to achieve 1.5°C by 2030. This misalignment reflects a financial architecture that does not correspond with the realities of climate change and shows a lack of political determination to utilise all available resources in the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) toolkit.
We therefore urge the G7, G21, Multilateral Financial Institutions and Development Partners to urgently deepen their engagement, collaborate, respond collectively and decisively to keep to the 1.5°C of the Paris Agreement. We insist on a fairer global system with global financial safety nets that work for the most climate-vulnerable countries by transforming the international financial architecture through:
Reference Documents
Formed in 2015, the V20 Finance Ministers is a dedicated cooperation initiative of economies systematically vulnerable to climate change. It is currently chaired by the Republic of Ghana. The V20 Finance Ministers membership stands at 68 economies representing some 1.74 billion people including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Chad, Colombia, Comoros, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jordan*, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Pakistan, Palau, Palestine**, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Viet Nam, and Yemen.
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