The third Green Climate Fund (GCF) Private Investment for Climate Conference opens today to accelerate the unlocking of untapped business finances to reverse the dangerous trend of climate change during the COVID-19 era.

The three-day, virtual conference brings global and national leaders together with leading business executives to generate new thinking on how to direct the trillions of dollars available in the private sector to forge climate investment opportunities in developing countries.

The conference, which has attracted over 4,000 registered participants, addresses a key challenge in the climate finance landscape.

While climate investments have been increasing during the past decade, they are still wide of the mark set by the Paris Agreement emission reduction and adaptation goals. It is acknowledged the private sector is key to filling the funding gap for climate action, while global financial markets need to increasingly incorporate climate risk to sustain corporate profits and a safe planet.

This year’s conference will explore how to ensure developing countries can access adequate finance to recover better and more sustainably from COVID-19 through green economic stimulus measures which do not compound debt.

Over 30 conference speakers include representatives from major financial sector players, including HSBC, MUFG, Rabobank, Macquarie, JP Morgan and Morocco’s Attijariwafa Bank (AWB), as well as global and national leaders such as United Nations Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed and Senegal President Macky Sall, along with Nobel economic prize winner Joseph Stiglitz.

Amid the current climate and COVID-19 challenges, GCF’s Private Investment for Climate Conference has become a key marker in the growing convergence between public and private interest to invest in a low-emission, climate-resilient future.

Check out the conference webpage to find out more about the event and to observe the online discussions.