Fiji deserves a quantum of the Climate Investment Fund (CIF) because of elevated debt levels and heightened sensitivity to pricing of financing options left in the aftermath of COVID-19 and severity of recent natural disasters.
Ministry of Finance’s head of Strategic Planning Krishnan Gounder made the comment when he presented the Renewable Energy Investment Plan (REI) to the Global Climate Action Programs (GCAP) sub-committee in Washington, US, on November 9 (2023).
The CIF governing board approved the REI Plan – a representation of what it states is a ‘first of a kind’ effort that will channel $US30.51 million ($F69m) in highly concessional capital to Fiji.
The funds will go towards improving the climate resilience of the existing transmission network, scale clean energy transmission solutions, enhance flexibility of energy systems, and finance other efforts to make integrating renewable energy more flexible, resilient and cost-efficient.
“Significant additional funding is required as the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of climate change on the severity and regularity of natural disasters, and the resulting permacrises has left Fiji with elevated debt levels and heightened sensitivity to the pricing of financing options,” Mr Gounder said.
“Maintaining debt sustainability is critical for vulnerable countries, and for Fiji to continue on its development path while addressing climate adaptation and mitigation, access to larger volumes of concessional resources will be vital.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Professor Biman Prasad acknowledged CIF GCAP for endorsing the investment plan given Fiji’s vulnerability to tropical cyclones, floods, and other climate-related disasters that caused extensive destructions to infrastructure, livelihoods, and imposed substantial financial bearing on Government’s balance sheet almost every year.
