Climate Change

On November 20, Mr. HORII Iwao, State Minister for Foreign Affairs received a courtesy call by Ms. Mafalda Duarte, Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and had discussions for approximately 20 minutes, during her visit to Japan.

State Minister Horii expressed his congratulations on Executive Director Duarte’s appointment as Executive Director of GCF in August and extended a warm welcome to her first visit to Japan as Executive Director. State Minister Horii stated that actions taken over the four-year period starting in 2024, which is the period of the GCF's second replenishment, would be critical towards achieving the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal, and he expressed his expectations for the GCF's role. Furthermore, State Minister Horii reiterated Japan’s intention to contribute up to 165 billion yen to the GCF's second replenishment, and its strong hope that the GCF will further promote mobilizing private finance, strengthen the adaptive capacity and resilience of countries that are particularly vulnerable to climate change, and utilize wide-ranging knowledge towards effective and efficient implementation and operation of projects.

Executive Director Duarte, in response, expressed her gratitude for Japan’s significant contribution to the GCF so far and shared her vision for the next four years, which included strengthening support for the most vulnerable people and communities, mobilizing private investment, and facilitating effective and efficient operation through strengthening partnerships and simplifying and streamlining processes. She also stated that she would look forward to working with Japan.

State Minister Horii and Executive Director Duarte also exchanged views on how to promote the recruitment of Japanese nationals to the GCF Secretariat and to encourage the engagement of Japanese companies in the GCF activities and they agreed to continue dialogue between Japan and the GCF.