GCF (Green Climate Fund)

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) was established in 2010 at COP16 in Cancún as an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) under Article 11. Its governing instrument was adopted at COP17 in Durban (2011), and the fund is headquartered in Songdo, Incheon, Republic of Korea.

The GCF channels finance from developed countries to developing countries to support a paradigm shift toward low-emission, climate-resilient development. It is governed by a 24-member Board with equal representation between developed and developing countries, and its activities are conducted through Accredited Entities (such as national ministries, UN agencies, multilateral development banks, and private financial institutions) and National Designated Authorities in recipient countries.

The fund pursues a 50:50 balance between mitigation and adaptation funding (in grant-equivalent terms) and aims to direct at least 50% of adaptation resources to particularly vulnerable countries, including Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDS), and African states. Instruments include grants, concessional loans, equity, and guarantees.

The GCF was central to operationalising the USD 100 billion per year climate finance pledge made by developed countries in Copenhagen (2009) and reaffirmed in the Paris Agreement (2015), although the GCF itself accounts for only a portion of that flow. The fund has undergone replenishment cycles: the Initial Resource Mobilization (IRM, 2015–2018) raised roughly USD 10.3 billion in pledges, followed by GCF-1 (2020–2023) and GCF-2 (2024–2027) replenishments.

The GCF is frequently debated in MUN and UNFCCC negotiations alongside the Adaptation Fund, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and the newer Loss and Damage Fund agreed at COP27/COP28. Critics highlight slow project disbursement and accreditation bottlenecks; supporters emphasise its scale relative to other dedicated climate funds.