Mitigating climate change will require up to 14 trillion dollars: ECLAC

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) said that the global investment required to mitigate the effects of climate change by 2030 is estimated between USD$3 and 14 trillion .

"It is the money that would enable us to reach the goal if we properly channel the resources towards the future," said the Director of ECLAC's Sustainable Development division, José Luis Samaniego.

During the forum of national development banks and green banks , the director assured that to meet the 2030 global agenda for sustainable development, countries and the private sector must turn to clean investments , otherwise they would be condemning future generations to face the consequences of bad decisions made today.

"If we decide to invest in high-carbon infrastructure , that will be suffered by our grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and we will pass on the price of correcting it," he said.

He commented that Trump 's decision not to recognize climate change and abandon the Paris Accord will have a global impact on climate change.

In that sense, he said that the impact for Latin America caused by climate change is estimated at four percentage points of the GDP of the region.

"Fortunately, the rest of the world has said that it will continue, Europeans, Chinese, Latin American countries have also made formal statements that they will adhere to the Paris Agreement," added Samaniego.

For his part, the Deputy Director General of International Affairs of the Ministry of Finance, Raúl Delgado , acknowledged that the government needs resources to aid all the municipalities that require advice on sustainable financing.

He commented that both states and companies lack the capacity to develop good sustainability projects . "There is a lot of money. There are big banks eager to develop good projects."

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