Climate and Development Ministerial meeting, March 2021: overview
Published 16 March 2021
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About the Climate and Development Ministerial
At the Climate Ambition Summit in December 2020, the COP President Designate announced that the UK will host the Climate and Development Ministerial on 31 March 2021.
This event convenes countries and partners to discuss the challenges and priorities for implementing the Paris Climate Agreement and Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development in the countries most vulnerable to climate change.
Conducted virtually, the event will bring together ministers and stakeholders to identify practical next steps on a series of priority issues for climate vulnerable communities ahead of COP26:
- access to climate finance
- responding to the impacts of climate change
- quantity, quality and composition of climate finance
- fiscal space and debt sustainability
A Chair’s summary will be released after the event, capturing the discussion and actions between the Ministerial and COP26.
Countries and institutions invited
Representatives from countries and institutions have been invited:
Countries
Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Egypt, Ethiopia, European Union, Fiji, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Malawi, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Morocco, Norway, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United States of America.
Institutions and funds
Adaptation Fund, African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Caribbean Development Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Global Environment Facility, Inter-American Development Bank, International Monetary Fund, Green Climate Fund, World Bank.
Other groups
Other groups and communities have engaged through preparatory discussions and consultations. Representatives from youth, indigenous peoples and civil society organisations will also participate in the roundtables and Ministerial.
Engagement before the Ministerial
The Ministerial aims to be as inclusive as possible, with a broad range of countries and organisations represented. Whilst the virtual platform means participation must be limited to keep discussions dynamic, wider civil society and non-participating member states have opportunities to inform the discussions and contribute to developing solutions. This means that the outcomes of the Ministerial will reflect contributions made by both participating and non-participating countries, communities and organisations.
In late February 2021, an independent consortium of think tanks convened subject experts from academia and civil society in a series of workshops. These workshops enabled independent discussion and exploration of policy solutions in each of the four issue areas. The insights and options discussed at the workshops are in published reports and were provided to participants ahead of expert roundtable meetings which took place on 16 March and 17 March 2021.
The roundtables offered participating countries, civil society, and multilateral institutions the opportunity to engage and recommend actions in the four key issue areas. These recommendations will be discussed by ministers and decision makers convened at the Ministerial.
In parallel, on 22 March 2021, the UK’s Mission to the United Nations undertook an all Member States briefing to provide a forum for countries to come forward with their suggestions for the Ministerial.
The COP Unit also welcomes all countries to provide written suggestions by 31 March. Please email your suggestions: cop26international@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.
Opportunities to observe the Ministerial
There are a limited number of spaces for observers to view the Ministerial. Registration links will be provided when this facility is live.