Countries should not shift climate financing exclusively to the private sector, World Bank Vice President for Sustainable Development Juergen Voegele said at the event on scaling up the climate action financing on the sidelines of COP29 in Baku.
He emphasized that achieving climate goals requires efforts from both private and public sectors: "However, we often observe an approach where the public sector says: 'We don't have money, let the private sector support us.' This approach is wrong. The public sector needs to act more pragmatically. Currently, countries worldwide spend $1.25 trillion annually on subsidizing activities that harm the climate. These funds are directed to support industries such as fossil fuels, agriculture, and fishing. We need to review these subsidies and approach the issue more thoughtfully."