Climate change cash 'unaccounted for'

Vast sums promised by rich nations including the UK to help developing countries tackle climate change cannot be accounted for, according to a study revealed today.

A total of 20 nations pledged up to $410m (€272m) a year in 2001, resulting in a pot that should be worth well in excess of $1.6bn (€1.06m).

But only $260m (€172.5m) has been paid into two United Nations funds earmarked for the purpose according to the latest figures, the BBC World Service investigation said.

The EU told the broadcaster that the money was collected in “bilateral and multilateral deals”, but was unable to provide data to back up the claim.

The sums were pledged in the 2001 Bonn Declaration, which was signed by the 15 countries that then made up the European Union, plus Canada, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland.

As of the end of September this year, the two UN funds – called the Least Developed Countries and Climate Change Funds – contained $155.4m (€103m) and $104.1m (€69m) respectively, the BBC said.

Boni Biagini, who runs the funds, told the broadcaster: “These numbers don’t match the $410m (€271m) per year. Otherwise, we’d be handling billions of dollars by now.”

Artur Runge-Metzger, the senior climate change negotiator for the European Union, said the EU had done what it promised to do.

“We can say we met the promise, climate finance has really been stepped up,” he told the BBC.

But he admitted the EU was unable to provide data to show it did pay the money.

“It’s sometimes very hard to say what is the climate bit of this financing,” Mr Runge-Metzger added.

Finance for developing countries to tackle global warming will be one of the issues discussed at next month’s Copenhagen climate change summit.