Ethiopian President: Global North is in no hurry to follow through on financing

The Global North, particularly European countries, are in no hurry to follow through on their financial commitment, Ethiopian President Taye Atske Selassie told journalists within COP29, Report informs.

The president noted that developing countries hope for financial support to fight the consequences of climate change: “But in the meantime, we're not going to wait until the money comes. We have to take our local actions. Because at the end of the day, what matters is what we do in our respective regions.”

“The Global North, particularly the European countries, I believe they are on the right track. There is a political will, there is a political commitment, but when it comes to the financing part, that's something that we are going to collectively ask Europe, you know, the Global North because we see that commitment readiness, but you don't see it right away, the commitment place into action,” he added.

Selassie also highlighted, “It's always very, either very slow, or it doesn't come forward. So that's a conundrum. That's a tricky question. But I can say that some countries, when we look at them individually at the bilateral level, there is a significant commitment. I can name a number of countries, but we are expecting, you know, support more coming collectively rather than in silos separately. It's not enough for now. Ask any European countries, they will tell you themselves it's not enough.”