Towards the Fifth Review of the UNFCCC’s Financial Mechanism

This policy brief outlines the context and objectives of the Fifth Review of the UNFCCC’s Financial Mechanism (FM), which was initiated at CoP18 in December 2012 and scheduled for conclusion by CoP20 in 2014. The document argues that the Review provides a critical opportunity to restructure the institutional architecture of climate finance, address past shortcomings of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and integrate new entities like the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the Standing Committee on Finance (SCF).

• The Fifth Review of the Financial Mechanism is designed to be more holistic and ambitious than previous reviews, assessing the entire spectrum of UNFCCC climate finance processes, including fast-start finance, the long-term finance work programme, and an initial review of the Adaptation Fund.
• Past reviews of the Financial Mechanism have been poorly received by developing countries, partly due to a perceived lack of compliance by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and a governance structure biased toward developed countries.
• The Global Environment Facility (GEF) has historically operated with significant autonomy from the conventions it serves, leading to suggestions that its relationship with the UNFCCC should be governed by a legally binding treaty instrument to ensure enforceable control.
• The Standing Committee on Finance (SCF) is mandated to lead the Fifth Review and improve the coherence and coordination of climate finance delivery, which includes the potential for a 'rationalisation' of the FM that could involve reorganising or phasing out specific funding instruments.
• There is a lack of consistency and verification regarding climate finance flowing through bilateral, regional, and other multilateral channels outside the UNFCCC, with donor countries reporting their contributions without a verification system from recipient countries.
• The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is identified as a potentially powerful Operating Entity that should learn from the shortcomings of existing funds and clarify its working relationship with the Conference of the Parties (CoP) to avoid varied interpretations of its role.

APA

Harmeling, S., & Kaloga, A. (2013). Towards the Fifth Review of the UNFCCC’s Financial Mechanism. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/CDKN_UNFCCCs_Financial_Mechanism_Final-22-March-2013.pdf

Chicago

Harmeling, Sven, and Alpha Kaloga. Towards the Fifth Review of the UNFCCC’s Financial Mechanism. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2013. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/CDKN_UNFCCCs_Financial_Mechanism_Final-22-March-2013.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Harmeling |first1=Sven |last2=Kaloga |first2=Alpha |title=Towards the Fifth Review of the UNFCCC’s Financial Mechanism |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=March 2013 |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/CDKN_UNFCCCs_Financial_Mechanism_Final-22-March-2013.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{harmeling2013towards, author = {Harmeling, Sven and Kaloga, Alpha}, title = {{Towards the Fifth Review of the UNFCCC’s Financial Mechanism}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2013}, month = mar, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/CDKN_UNFCCCs_Financial_Mechanism_Final-22-March-2013.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }