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More than 100 mayors from around the world on Saturday called on G20 leaders to create a “Loss and Damage Fund” so that cities can directly access financing to combat the effects of climate change. This statement marks the end of the two-day Urban20 Municipal Summit in Ahmedabad.
It has been endorsed by mayors or city leaders of 32 cities, including Ahmedabad, Delhi and Mumbai, in G20 countries that were part of the U20 group and 73 observer cities, of which 22 are foreign and 51 are Indian. No Chinese or Russian cities were among those that signed the statement.
Echoing the G20 theme of “One Earth, One Family, One Future”, we want to encourage more ambitious collaboration between national governments, cities, citizens and other stakeholders to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework within the “Decade of Action.” This, according to the statement.
Mayors said there should be regulations for new buildings to operate at net zero and old buildings to be retrofitted. They said public transit, zero-emission vehicles and “active travel” such as walking and cycling should take priority.
The statement called for development financing reform to provide more support for climate action in cities. She said that investment in fossil fuels should not be incentivized, while donors, financial institutions and public banks should create urban climate finance initiatives.
“Expand multilateral and national financing to consider just transition and socio-economic aspects as part of the project evaluation and include funding for technical assistance, capacity building and workforce readiness. Create a Loss and Damage Fund that can be accessed directly by cities to promote climate justice and include this proposal in ongoing discussions on reform Multilateral Development Banks.
Mayors also called for fair treatment of all people during the transition to cleaner energy. “Promote the fair treatment and meaningful participation of all people in the development and enforcement of social and environmental policies, regardless of race, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, or income. Enact regulations to promote green employment opportunities in all sectors, especially for youth and women.”
The statement also reflected what was repeated by the various participation groups of the G20 on the issue of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “The U20 collectively advocates a peaceful resolution of the conflict through political dialogue in appropriate fora, mediation and other peaceful means and is committed to promoting a culture of peace, timely humanitarian response and respect for democracy and human rights,” the statement read.
The statement was handed over to Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Puri and India’s G20 Chief Sherpa Amitabh Kant. In a tweet, Buri said he was sure Kant would “incorporate the recommendations into the final deliberations of the G-20 Summit,” referring to the G-20 leaders’ summit in September.
Meanwhile, Kant said that changing the lives of the urban poor is crucial to the growth of cities. Former NITI CEO Aayog said Saturday that in the past eight years, India has built 40 million homes and provided 110 million water connections, equal to the populations of Australia and Brazil, respectively.
climate action plan
Creation of the Loss and Damage Fund.
Comprehensive development financing
Give priority to public transportation
– Just treat people amid the green transition
Net zero regulations for new buildings
Discouraging investment in fossil fuels
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