More focus needed on helping vulnerable countries to tackle climate crisis, IMF chief says

Fund’s managing director warns climate change presents ‘fundamental risk’ to stability

The International Monetary Fund has said it will embrace a transition to a more environmentally friendly economy as the world recovers from the coronavirus pandemic, with its chief arguing that there should be more focus on protecting vulnerable countries from the climate crisis.

Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF’s managing director, told the Climate Adaptation Summit on Monday that global warming presented a “fundamental risk to economic and financial stability” in the years ahead.

She added that global economic output could expand by 0.7 per cent over the next 15 years and millions of jobs could be created if carbon prices rose steadily and investments expanded in green infrastructure.

“We see climate as a fundamental risk for economic and financial stability, and we see climate action as an opportunity to reinvigorate growth, especially after the pandemic, and to generate new green jobs,” Ms Georgieva said.

The online climate summit event, hosted by the Netherlands, aims to set out practical solutions and plans for dealing with climate change in the period until 2030.

The IMF chief also told The Guardian that the organisation would work to help countries that have been hit by the climate crisis.

“What we want is for countries to think of the IMF as a source of help, and not be afraid to come to us,” Ms Georgieva told the newspaper.

“We want to build buffers to these shocks for countries that are highly vulnerable.”

She added: “The impact of a changing climate is already upon us, hitting vulnerable countries and vulnerable people most severely. These are countries that are often already experiencing economic and social problems.”

On Monday, the IMF said it would take action in a number of areas going forward to accelerate the transition to a new low-carbon and climate-resilient economy.

Ms Georgieva said the fund would launch a new “climate change dashboard” this year to track the economic impact of climate risks and the measures taken to mitigate them, and include climate-related financial stability risks in its financial-sector surveys.

The IMF will also integrate climate factors into its annual economic country assessments, focusing on adaptation in highly vulnerable countries and carbon pricing in its assessment of large emitters.

It came as John Kerry, the new US special climate envoy, said the Biden administration would take part in international efforts to slow climate change, in a break from policy under Donald Trump.

“We're proud to be back. We come back with humility for the absence over the last four years and we will do everything in our power to make up for it,” Mr Kerry told the Climate Adaptation Summit by video link.

“President Biden has made fighting climate change a top priority of his administration. We have a president now, thank God, who leads, tells the truth and is seized by this issue."

In one of his first acts as president, Joe Biden rejoined the 2015 Paris climate agreement last week following Mr Trump’s withdrawal from the deal late last year.

Additional reporting by agencies