ADB puts up climate change network, finance center in PH
Written by : MAYVELIN U. CARABALLO
Manila Times
The availability of low-carbon and climate-resilient technologies in Asia-Pacific will be expanded through the new Climate Technology Network and Finance Center, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced over the weekend.
In a statement, ADB revealed that the center will help mobilize financing for clean technology by folding technology considerations into national investment plans and strategies, and by piloting innovative financing mechanisms.
The network will provide complementary technical support and policy advice, and be a forum for knowledge sharing.
ADB said that a pilot technology marketplace to spur transactions in climate-friendly technologies will also be established.
The center is supported by the ADB and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), with core funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
“The countries of Asia and the Pacific need to rapidly deploy new technologies capable of decoupling their growth from high emissions of greenhouse gases, and they need to build their resilience to climate change impacts,” said S. Chander, ADB director general for Regional and Sustainable Development Department.
ADB added that the Asia-Pacific region is the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with emissions from the energy sector alone up 183 percent since 1990, and has more people at risk who live in the region’s coastal cities, and in rural areas where livelihoods are heavily dependent on agriculture and other climate-sensitive sectors.
Furthermore, the new center and secretariat aim to generate investments that will cut GHG emissions by more than 12 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent over the next 10 years. During the same period, they hope to cut energy use by the equivalent of 1.5 million barrels of oil, or 12.3 million megawatt hours of electricity.
ADB also said that about $11 million in grant was provided by GEF to support the center.
“The project shows GEF’s commitment to technology transfer and innovative approaches that encompass both mitigation and adaptation,” said Monique Barbut, GEF chief executive officer.
She added that the project is an example of GEF’s support for the operationalization and activities of Climate Technology Network and Finance Centers, in response to the United Nations Framework Convention Climate Change decision received as guidance from the 2011 Durban Conference of the Parties, in line with GEF procedures.
Other cofinancers are the governments of Denmark, Finland, Japan, South Korea, and the VITO-Flemish Institute for Technological Research NV.
The technology finance center will be set up in Manila to be managed by ADB, while the climate technology network secretariat will be based in Bangkok to be managed by UNEP.
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