1 July 2014: The first contributor meeting of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) kicked off the initial resource mobilization process aimed at capitalizing the Fund, and discussed policies for contributions through which support can be mobilized. Once the Fund is capitalized, grants and concessional loans will be provided for mitigation and adaptation projects and programmes in developing countries, beginning early 2015.

The first GCF contributor meeting convened in Oslo, Norway, from 30 June to 1 July 2014, just weeks after the GCF Board agreed on the Fund’s major operational polices. Senior officials from 24 developed and developing countries interested in contributing to the Fund, as well as observers, attended the discussions, during which Tine Sundtoft, Norwegian Minister for Climate and Environment, underlined that only with a solid GCF can a “meaningful deal in Paris be reached.”

Through the initial resources mobilization process, the Fund is seeking to raise its initial resources between now and the end of the year. Thus, it aims to become one of the key instruments for multilateral climate finance in the future and channel a significant share of international climate finance. Interested contributers are expected to develop recommendations for the Fund’s Board at its October meeting, ahead of a special pledging meeting in November.

The GCF is expected to be result-driven, effective and efficient and to maximize climate impact, fostering the transition towards low-carbon and climate-resilient development. The Fund includes a Private Sector Facility to help mobilize private sector financing in addition to public funds. [GCF Press Release, 29 June 2014] [GCF Press Release, 1 July 2014] [IISD RS Story on the Seventh Meeting of the GCF Board]