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Stiell urges climate finance reform to break developing countries’ debt-disaster cycle – EnviroNews
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The Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Simon Stiell, has called for a fundamental reform of the global climate finance system, warning that developing countries remain trapped in a cycle of debt, climate disasters and rising borrowing costs that undermines their ability to invest in resilience and low-carbon development.
Stiell said climate finance must move beyond funding individual projects towards supporting broader economic transformation, strengthening national institutions and creating conditions that attract more affordable investment into vulnerable economies.
He made the call on Friday, November 13, 2026, while delivering remarks at the Seventh Biennial High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Finance at the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye.
He argued that although international climate negotiations had made progress in setting financial targets, meeting those commitments would not necessarily address the actual financing needs of developing countries unless the mechanisms for delivering the funds were fundamentally improved.
Tracing the evolution of international climate finance commitments, Stiell recalled that countries agreed to the $100 billion annual climate finance goal at the 2010 United Nations climate conference in Cancun, Mexico.
He noted that the negotiations subsequently produced new financial commitments at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 2024, including a goal of at least $300 billion annually by 2035, with developed countries taking the lead.
The agreement also called for all actors to work together to scale up financing for developing countries from all public and private sources to at least $1.3 trillion annually by 2035.
Stiell said the Baku-to-Belém Roadmap provides a pathway towards achieving the larger financing ambition but stressed that the international community must ensure that the resources reach countries on terms that reflect their economic realities.
“We have a pathway to get there: the Baku to Belem Roadmap – which must become a reality. But meeting a financial target does not always meet countries’ needs. To do that, we need to look at how finance is delivered,” he said.
Debt and climate disasters deepen developing countries’ vulnerability
Stiell identified the growing interaction between sovereign debt and climate vulnerability as one of the most pressing challenges confronting developing economies.
He explained that countries exposed to floods, wildfires, storms and droughts often face higher borrowing costs even before disasters occur because lenders and financial markets factor climate risks into their assessments.
When disasters strike, governments experience declining revenues, mounting reconstruction costs and increasing debt, leaving fewer resources available for climate adaptation and resilience.
This creates a cycle in which countries become increasingly vulnerable to climate shocks while their capacity to invest in preventing future disasters continues to weaken.
According to Stiell, climate finance must help developing countries break this cycle by supporting investments that strengthen their economies and reduce their exposure to climate risks.
He called for a shift from financing isolated projects towards supporting economic transformation capable of generating long-term benefits.
Under this approach, investments would strengthen national institutions, improve the conditions for private-sector investment, reduce financing costs and create opportunities for resilient infrastructure and low-emissions development.
He explained that stronger institutions and more resilient economies would, in turn, attract additional investment, creating a positive cycle of development and climate action.
Calls for affordable and flexible climate finance
Outlining four priorities for reforming climate finance delivery, Stiell said financing arrangements must first respond to countries’ debt situations and economic circumstances.
He maintained that financial terms should reflect national conditions and debt sustainability, ensuring that climate investments do not worsen existing financial pressures.
While acknowledging the importance of private finance, loans and guarantees in mobilising resources at the scale required, he stressed that grants and highly concessional financing would remain indispensable for the most vulnerable countries.
These include Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and other economies facing significant climate risks and limited fiscal capacity.
He also called for broader international efforts to address debt challenges, arguing that developing countries should not be forced to choose between servicing external debts and protecting their populations against climate change.
The issue is particularly important for African countries, many of which face high debt-servicing obligations, limited fiscal space and growing requirements for climate adaptation investment.
For these countries, reliance on commercial borrowing to finance climate resilience can create additional financial vulnerabilities, particularly when climate-related disasters damage infrastructure, disrupt economic activities and reduce government revenues.
Stiell seeks simpler access to climate funds
The UN climate chief identified complicated funding procedures and fragmented financing arrangements as another major obstacle preventing developing countries from accessing climate finance.
He said countries seeking support often have to navigate complex application requirements, administrative procedures and different eligibility criteria across multiple climate funds and financial institutions.
According to him, the administrative burden associated with accessing climate finance must be reduced through simplified procedures and better coordination among financing institutions.
“We need procedures simplified. Financial institutions coordinating. And administrative burdens eased,” he said.
He argued that improving access to finance would require international institutions to work more closely together rather than maintaining fragmented systems that increase transaction costs and delay the implementation of climate projects.
The challenge is particularly significant for countries with limited institutional and technical capacity to prepare bankable projects, meet accreditation requirements and navigate complex funding arrangements.
National institutions must lead climate finance delivery
Stiell’s third priority focused on ensuring that international climate finance aligns with countries’ development priorities and strengthens existing national institutions rather than bypassing them.
He observed that governments already have established systems for financing development through national treasuries, local governments, development banks and domestic financial institutions.
These structures, he said, should be strengthened to enable countries to access and deploy climate finance more effectively.
He called for investments in institutional capacity, financial management systems and national mechanisms that would allow developing countries to take greater ownership of climate-related investments.
He also emphasised the importance of continuing to develop and transfer technologies that support climate resilience and low-emissions development.
For developing countries, technology transfer remains important in expanding renewable energy, improving agricultural productivity, strengthening early warning systems and building climate-resilient infrastructure.
Stiell maintained that climate finance should support these national priorities rather than impose external systems that weaken local ownership.
Better coordination of finance, technology and capacity-building
The fourth priority, according to Stiell, is stronger coordination among governments, climate funds, development banks, financial institutions and private investors to align financing, technology and capacity-building with national development objectives.
He said countries needed support to translate their climate plans and development priorities into viable investments and projects capable of improving resilience and delivering tangible benefits to communities.
He proposed a coordinated financing approach in which different financial instruments are deployed at different stages of project development.
For instance, grant financing could initially support institutional strengthening, technical preparation and the development of investment pipelines.
Concessional loans and risk-sharing instruments could subsequently help projects expand and attract additional private capital.
Such an approach, he explained, would ensure that each investment builds on previous interventions, reducing risks and improving the prospects of attracting further financing.
He also called on the international climate process to provide a platform for mobilising resources around countries’ priorities and strengthening cooperation among relevant institutions.
A new chapter for global climate finance
Stiell said the Seventh Biennial High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Finance, which forms part of a series established in 2013, should help advance a new approach to international climate finance.
He acknowledged that the dialogues had contributed to progress in global climate finance discussions but stressed that their next phase must focus on improving how resources are mobilised, accessed and deployed.
The discussions at COP31 come amid growing pressure on developed countries and international financial institutions to scale up climate finance for developing economies, particularly as the impacts of climate change intensify.
The $300 billion annual goal agreed at COP29 represents a significant increase over the previous $100 billion commitment, while the broader $1.3 trillion ambition reflects the estimated scale of investment required to support climate action in developing countries.
However, questions remain over the composition of the financing, the balance between grants and loans, the accessibility of funds and the extent to which the resources will reach the countries and communities most exposed to climate impacts.
For African countries, the debate is especially important because of the continent’s substantial adaptation financing needs, infrastructure deficits and limited access to affordable long-term capital.
Stiell maintained that the effectiveness of global climate finance should ultimately be measured not simply by the amount of money pledged but by its ability to strengthen economies, protect communities and accelerate the transition to climate-resilient, low-emissions development.
“This must be a new chapter of climate finance,” he said, urging the international community to ensure that every dollar invested in development contributes to a more sustainable and resilient future for all countries.
