UN Secy Gen Antonio Guterres urges global partnership for green growth

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for global partnership to tackle climate change and strive towards inclusive green growth.

He made the appeal in a video message at the Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030 Summit hosted by South Korea on Sunday, reports Xinhua news agency.

"The title of this initiative expresses exactly what the world needs now, global partnership: partnership to beat Covid-19 and build a better recovery, partnership to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, and partnership to address climate change," he told the summit.

Tackling climate change head-on will help protect the most vulnerable people from the next crisis while sustaining a job-rich recovery from Covid-19, according to Guterres.

The first priority is no new coal plants and a phase-out of coal use by 2030 in the countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and 2040 in the rest of the world, the UN chief added.

"As well as the emissions gap, I am deeply concerned about the finance and adaptation gaps."

He further said that developed countries are yet to deliver on their commitment of $100 billion per year as adaptation assistance.

"We urgently need a breakthrough on adaptation and resilience. I am asking all donor countries to significantly enhance their financial commitments. That includes allocating 50 per cent of climate finance to adaptation and providing a higher level of grants."

The G7 Summit in June needs to deliver on all these objectives, Guterres said, adding that it is not a global partnership if some are left struggling to survive.

--IANS

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