Climate Financing Will Be Ineffective Without Trade Policies- Okonjo Iweala

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), says climate financing cannot be effective if trade policies are ignored.

Speaking at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt on Tuesday, Okonjo-Iweala described the gap between trade policies and climate adaptation as “a big missing piece.”

She acknowledged the pledges made by countries and other international partners to mitigate the effects of climate change, but said restricting trade would negate achievements gained.

Earlier, the UK had announced it tripled its climate finance budget to £1.5 billion, while allocating £95 million to support climate-resilient agriculture in Nigeria.

“The WTO doesn’t have money to announce but I’m pleased to hear the new financial commitments being made, thankful to all the donors,” Okonjo-Iweala said.

“However, whilst financing is important, trade and policies can block everything. Trade policies and restrictions can be a bottleneck for money to work. By leaving out trade policy from what is being done on climate change side is a big missing piece.”

Okonjo-Iweala also said trade is often viewed as part of the problem but, in reality, is it part of the solution to climate change and food security.