Investment flows can't be treated as climate finance: India

India today said investment flows -- which can have green benefits -- cannot be treated as climate finance, that should ideally come from public funding or there should be a subvention for industries to adopt climate-friendly technologies.
While demanding the need to curb "discrimination" against industries from major developing countries in global carbon market, the country also emphasised the need to consider transfer of green technologies at affordable cost from developed world to the developing nations.
India insisted that the above issues need to be addressed seriously while finalising the new global climate pact in Paris later this year.
"We have been saying that investment flow is not climate change finance. Investment flow in any case happens, and that is in anticipation of return of investment.

"Therefore, investment per se unless it is on differentiated interest to promote climate-friendly technologies, can't be considered as climate finance," said Susheel Kumar, Additional Secretary in the Environment Ministry.
He flagged India's concerns with visiting French Special Envoy for Conference of Parties (COP)-21 Laurence Tubiana here at a Ficci organised business interactive session.

Asserting that finance should come from both public and private channels, Kumar said, "What should be climate finance is either public funding or some kind of a subvention for the industry to adopt climate-friendly technologies."
Developed countries have committed to mobilise USD 100 billion each year by 2020 to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) -- set up under the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2010 -- to help developing countries deal with climate change.

India and other developing countries have been seeking clarity on ways to mobilise the targeted GCF. They have been insisting that climate fund should be via public funding so that there is credibility of the commitment.
The French Special Envoy, Tubiana said efforts are being made to ensure that developed countries fulfil the promises they made to mobile climate fund.
"However, the question remains whether to raise the quantum of climate fund post 2020 or should we have net target - all these issues need to be addressed before the Paris meeting," she said.
Noting that the developing countries can't wait for green technologies, she said, "We can't wait for 20 years to get technologies. It is too long. We don't have time. We should come forward with ideas how we can build a cooperation mechanism to get everybody on board."

Special Envoy of the French President for the Protection of the Plant, Nicolas Hulut said that the forthcoming G-20 meeting to be held in Turkey in November will discuss about the climate finance issue.
"If developed countries have to honour their commitment, then it is important to clarify the modalities... All these issues will be discussed at G-20 meeting," he added.