Norway doubles support to the Green Climate Fund

The Green Climate Fund is playing a key role in helping the world achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global average temperature increase to below two degrees Celsius. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), climate change is leading to more extreme weather events, greater competition for natural resources, increased displacement, more health problems, weakened economic growth and greater inequality. It is the most vulnerable groups and countries that are most severely affected.

‘The Green Climate Fund has delivered good results. The Fund is playing an important role in helping the international community to meet the goals set out in the Paris Agreement, and in helping the most vulnerable countries become more resilient to climate change. We will therefore double our support to the Fund from next year,’ said Ms Solberg.

At the UN Climate Action Summit today, Prime Minister Solberg announced that the Government will double its annual contribution to the Green Climate Fund from NOK 400 million to NOK 800 million from 2020.

The Green Climate Fund was established by the parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2010. In the period 2015 to 2018, Norway has contributed NOK 1.68 billion to the Fund. So far, the Fund has approved 111 projects in 99 countries, with a total value of over USD 5 billion. 

In addition to its support for the Green Climate Fund, the Norwegian Government is supporting a number of other climate measures. The Government is giving priority to efforts to limit and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it will increase its support for efforts to promote climate change adaptation in developing countries. Focus areas will include reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, increasing production of and access to renewable energy, the phasing out of fossil-fuel subsidies, measures to promote food and nutrition security, weather and climate services, agricultural research, disaster risk reduction, and the conservation of biodiversity.