EU’s promise of billions for developing countries to fight climate change

Clive Leviev-Sawyer in the Sofia Echo: The European Union has promised to contribute 2.4 billion euro towards global efforts to quickly get climate change adaptation under way in developing countries. This was one of the results from the meeting of the European Council, the EU's heads of state and government, on December 11 2009.

The so-called "Fast start funding" is money to be used to, in the words of the EU, "quickly get climate change adaptation measures under way in developing countries". The money is for adaptation, mitigating the effects of climate change and capacity building, according to an EU presidency statement.

The EU wants to work for an annual global contribution of seven billion euro a year between 2010 and 2012. Of this, the EU leaders have agreed to contribute 2.4 billion euro annually. Earlier, the European Council struggled among themselves to agree about contributions for a proposed six billion euro package to assist developing countries take steps against climate change.

Before the two-day European Council meeting began on December 10 2009, hopes were that the group would come up with funding of two billion euro a year from 2010 to 2012 to assist initial, rapid steps by developing countries. Longer-term, the EU wants to provide 100 billion euro to developing countries to help with problems associated with climate change, including deforestation and desertification….

Flags of the European Union, design by Maycoll F. Vieira, Wikimedia Commons