Scottish Government to double climate fund for poorest countries

The Scottish Government is set to announce the doubling of a climate fund aimed at benefiting the poorest countries in the world.

Ahead of a debate on climate change in Holyrood on Tuesday, net zero secretary Michael Matheson has said the climate justice fund will increase from £3m to £6m until the end of this parliamentary term.

The fund was set up in 2012 and has, among other initiatives, provided £3.2m to rural communities in Malawi to help them mitigate the impact of climate change.

Ahead of the debate, Matheson said: “With COP26 coming to Glasgow, this is a pivotal year for making sure countries in the global south have the support they need to tackle climate change.

“That’s why we are doubling our financial support for some of the world’s most vulnerable nations.

“We have committed to ending our contribution to climate change within a generation and we are making great progress – Scotland is already more than halfway to net zero.

“To play our full role in supporting the aims of the Paris agreement, we must also be an ally to the nations most urgently impacted by climate change.

“By doubling our funding for those countries, we will provide much-needed support for those that, while making up only a fraction of the world’s emissions, are already feeling the effects severely.”

Jamie Livingstone, the head of Oxfam Scotland, said: “Right now, across the world, people are losing their lives and homes to climate change.

“This announcement by the Scottish Government is a very welcome and timely acknowledgement that faster action to reduce our emissions must be accompanied by an urgent scaling up of the financial support given to vulnerable countries that are not only the least responsible for the climate crisis, but also the least equipped to cope with it.

“The detail of where this extra money comes from is important too; with only weeks to go until crunch Cop26 climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland should bolster its global leadership by signalling its intent to tax the high emitters that are making the climate emergency worse.

“Doing so would send a powerful message to the rest of the world that climate change isn’t just a matter of science, technology or economics, it’s a matter of justice.”