ONE Campaign responds to Summit for a New Global Financial Pact

Paris, 23 June: At the conclusion of The Summit for a New Global Financial Pact, hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, anti-poverty organization The ONE Campaign responds to a meeting that offered bold ambition, saw welcome engagement from low and middle income countries and delivered some important progress, but which ultimately lacked the scale and speed of concrete action needed.

Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, ONE’s Director for France, said: “President Macron deserves credit for setting an agenda that finally reflects the scale of crises the world is facing and having succeeded in putting the climate and economic crises that are hitting poor countries hard under the spotlight. 

“The summit made some encouraging progress, including progress towards the reallocation of $100 billion in Special Drawing Rights, the suspension of debts in the event of climate-related disasters, and an agreement on the restructuring of Zambian debt. But nothing much more concrete.  

“Until the richest and most powerful countries are prepared to act with the necessary scale and speed, we are still a long way from a truly “new global financial deal”. We must not allow the needs of the whole world to be stifled by the inertia of a few.  The ambition displayed by this summit must continue and lead to much more concrete action.”  

Despite the positive involvement of a significant number of leaders from middle and low income countries – including President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria, President Willima Ruto of Kenya, President Macky Sall of Senegal and Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados, campaigners from the global south voiced concerns about the lack of concrete action agreed at the summit.

Adenike Oladosu, ONE Campaign champion and Nigerian climate activist said: “The summit shows there are undeniably good intentions among many key global actors to tackle climate change, poverty and injustice. But the truth is that good intentions alone will not feed the starving, will not prevent further climate disaster or pay off our debts. We have seen some new money on the table – but not enough to deal with the scale of challenges we are facing. 

“More promises cannot solve the climate crisis but rather acting on those promises is where the real action lies. What will make this summit a success is the real action that follows afterwards. If that action doesn’t come, we will still be left wondering whether global leaders will ever treat the threat from climate change and extreme poverty with the same urgency as people and families who have to deal with them on a daily basis.”

ENDS –

Notes to editors

1. Over the course of the two day summit, leaders committed to important steps to help increase the financing available to help the world’s poorest countries to respond to the threats posed by climate change and tackle extreme poverty – including:

• An increase in the amount of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) being re-channelled to the world’s poorest countries – including an increase from 30% to 40% by France and an increase from $40 billion to $60 billion in SDRs that can be reallocated through the IMF.  (ONE’s updated SDR tracker shows the latest commitments)
• Agreement by many key actors, including the UK, US, France and the World Bank on pause clauses on debt repayments to help low income countries that have been affected by natural disasters (a position ONE campaigned for the World Bank to adopt during COVID-19).Canada also indicated vocal support.
• Further support for reform of the World Bank and other global financial institutions, including calls to unlock an additional $200bn over the next decade from the MDBs.

2.

• However with the impact of climate change alone set to cost low income countries nearly $3trillion trillion dollars by 2030, the summit failed to deliver the step change in new investment and finance needed- in particular failing to:

• Meet the $100billion target for rechannelling SDRs (excluding pledges that cannot currently be met)
• Provide clarity on whether they will finally reach the annual $100 billion climate finance target first promised in 2009
• Provide a clear timeline for World Bank reforms and to triple loans and grants by 2030
• Agree new taxes to help raise funding for low income countries affected by climate change.

3.

• For more information, see our data dives:

• On Special Drawing Rights including our latest intel tracking pledges and what has gone to countries.
• On how to reform the Multilateral Development Banks, including a tool to see how much could be unlocked from the World Bank, and tracking shareholders positions.

On the debt crisis and a plan to tackle it.