Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Finance ministers from countries critically threatened by climate change launched the “Vulnerable Twenty” (V20) group on Thursday (October 8), in an effort to strengthen economic and financial cooperation and action to address risks associated with climate change.
During it’s inaugural meeting in Lima, Peru, the group revealed several proposals that aim to mobilize public and private resources for climate action.
These include the creation of an international financial transaction tax to fund climate action, and a Climate Risk Pooling Mechanism to improve recovery after climate-induced extreme weather events and disasters, and to enhance security of jobs, livelihoods, businesses, and investors.
“In the absence of an effective global response, annual economic losses due to climate change are projected to exceed $400 billion by 2030 for the V20, with impacts far surpassing our local or regional capabilities,” said Philippine Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima.
The Philippines currently leads the V20, with Purisima as the group’s chairperson.
The V20 spans twenty from Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the Pacific that are home to well over 500 million people and are highly vulnerable to climate change.
“The world needs stronger voices from developing countries to draw more attention to their great needs for investment in fighting the impacts from climate change,” said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.
“This new group of 20 countries, led by the Philippines, will play an important role in pushing for greater investment in climate resiliency and low carbon growth at home and internationally,” he added.
Apart from the Philippines, the group’s other members include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Barbados, Bhutan, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Kiribati, Madagascar, Maldives, Nepal, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Vietnam.
