17 November 2010: The Council of the Finance Ministers of the EU, meeting on 17 November 2010, in Brussels, Belgium, discussed climate finance and endorsed the report on progress on EU fast-start funding.

The Council reaffirmed the collective commitment by developed countries in the Copenhagen Accord to provide new and additional resources, including forestry and investments through international institutions, approaching US$30 billion for the period 2010-2012, recalling the EU’s commitment to provide €7.2 billion cumulatively over that period and to present a comprehensive fast-start finance report in 2010 and thereafter on an annual basis. It emphasized that the EU and its member States have advanced in the implementation of their fast-start funding commitments for 2010, endorsing the final report on such progress to be presented at the Cancun Climate Change Conference in late 2010. The Council also invited the European Commission to integrate fast-start finance reporting into its annual EU accountability and development finance report, with a further end-of-year update for UNFCCC meetings as needed.

According to the “EU Fast start finance Report for Cancun,” the EU and its Member States have mobilized €2.2 billion of fast-start finance in 2010, which is enabling developing countries to: better protect themselves against severe weather events and other adverse effects of climate change, including by promoting national adaptation planning, and funding science and analysis to support decision making; develop on a sustainable low-carbon path, including through supporting projects on low-carbon energy, energy efficiency and low-carbon transport; protect forests while supporting economic development; and prepare for the effective and efficient implementation of a new climate regime and scaled-up financial flows in the longer term. The report notes that most EU fast-start finance is provided through member State budgets, based on voluntary contributions, and allocated on the basis of national decisions. [Council Conclusions] [EU Fast Start Finance Report for Cancun]