India shows intent as problem solver for climate crisis, says Bhupender Yadav at G20 Meet in Bali

Bali [Indonesia], August 31 : Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday said that India shows an intent as a problem solver despite not being a traditional contributor to global emissions.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the G20 environmental and climate ministerial meeting in Bali, Indonesia, the minister said that the current pace and scale of climate finance from developed countries is not matching the global aspiration to combat climate change.
The minister highlighted that the world is going through multiple crises, with rising energy bills, food insecurity, and a pandemic that continues to push back years of progress in sustainable development.
He said that there is an urgent need to mobilise resources to stimulate the economy in a manner that makes it more resilient and sustainable.
"While India has not been a traditional contributor to global emissions, we are showing the intent in our actions to be a problem solver," he added.
Yadav further said India is totally committed to driving its low-carbon industry transitions through a multi-pronged approach that cuts across sectors and issues.
"India, under PM Narendra Modi, is committed to driving its low carbon industry transitions through a multi-pronged approach cutting across sectors. The low carbon growth strategy as enunciated in 'Panchamrit' is a reflection of our commitment to sustainable development."
India has made remarkable progress in recent years in electrifying all households, rapidly increasing access to clean cooking energy and is also one of the world's largest markets for the deployment of renewable energy.
"India's National Green Hydrogen Mission promises to be a game-changer for reducing emissions from hard-to-abate sectors. All these efforts need investment at lower costs and innovative models for scaling up climate finance to double 2019 levels by 2025. New approaches are also needed to develop and deploy low-carbon technologies," he added.
He underscored that India has progressively reduced and rationalised subsidies, through the elimination of major transport fuel subsidies, and better targeting, such as by providing subsidies on renewable sources of energy and concessional tax rates.
Yadav said that the poorest countries and most vulnerable communities, have contributed the least to the climate crisis, but are bearing its maximum impact while they lack the technology and capacity and finance required to significantly alter the status quo.
"However, the promise of climate finance remains a mirage. An added problem is the clubbing of development finance with climate finance," he said.
70 per cent of public climate finance was given out as loans instead of grants in 2019, the minister said.
"In 2019-20, only 6 per cent of climate finance was in grants. This is pushing developing countries into more debt. Developing countries face an estimated gap of USD 1 trillion in Covid-19 spending." he added.
He called for the need to recognise that development and environment conservation need to be aligned, rather than treating them as exclusive of each other to effectively combat climate change globally.
"Secondly, we must decouple economic growth from greenhouse gas emissions, while considering national circumstances and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDR-RC)," he said.
The Union Minister said that the economies at large must inculcate resource efficiency and circularity, while considering national circumstances and capabilities, to achieve environmental, climate, and development paradigms.
"The primary responsibility for the transition towards net-zero emissions rests with those who have historically accounted for most of accumulated greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere," he said.
G20 members must hold a special responsibility towards the ocean, as they are all coastal countries and are cumulatively responsible for 45 per cent of the world's coastlines and over 21 per cent of exclusive economic zones, the minister noted.