Climate Finance under the UNFCCC: Overview of instruments and negotiation tracks

Finance remains one of the core pillars of the UN climate regime, alongside mitigation and adaptation. The concept of climate finance encompasses a broad range of issues — from quantitative targets and aligning financial flows with low-carbon development pathways to transparency, access to resources, and the functioning of climate funds. The topic remains highly relevant, particularly in the context of supporting developing countries, and continues to be among the most complex and politically sensitive areas of climate negotiations.

Although climate finance is not formally pointed as a top priority at the upcoming COP30 in Belem, related issues are expected to feature prominently across several key negotiation tracks. These include the implementation of the new collective quantified goal (NCQG), the development of indicators for the Global Goal on Adaptation, the operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund, and the ongoing discussions around Articles 2.1(c) and 9 of the Paris Agreement.

This brief (in Russian) prepared by the ICLRC offers a structured overview of the climate finance agenda under the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement. It covers the institutional architecture of climate finance, the functioning of key financial entities (such as the GEF and GCF), relevant decisions of the Conference of the Parties, and current negotiation dynamics — highlighting the issues to watch ahead of COP30.