(The Scotia Group, 20.Sep.2023) — A High-Level UNGA consultative session on international finance and energy transition diplomacy, which included sitting and former Heads of State and Government, as well as experts from the RAND Corporation and members of the Scotia Group, was convened on 18 September 2023 by international mediation and energy law expert Professor Malik Al Dahlan.
The Permanent Mission of Antigua and Barbuda jointly with the Alliance of Small Island Developing States (AOSIS) and the Scotia Group, which Professor Al Dahlan founded in 2021 as part of an informal sherpa process to support COP26, hosted the 78th UN General Assembly side meeting on this important issue.
A Call to Action was issued at the event which advocated for a fundamental shift in the way climate finance is raised and deployed. RAND Corporation and the Scotia Group announced a ‘Roadmap for a Global Energy Transition’ which introduced new financial and legal tools which will encourage much needed green investments in Small Island Development States (SIDs) in collaboration with the United Nations Office of Project Services (UNOPS) and members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and MERCOSUR countries.
Four specific proposals were outlined:
Global Energy Transition Fund: Funded in part by 2.5% of hydrocarbon sales in the Islamic World being earmarked as Zakat contributions to allow countries to scale up mitigation efforts and complete the energy transition by 2050 supported by Paraguay and Brazil.
Electronic Platform for Green Securities (‘NetZero Exchange’): To allow buyers and sellers to interact and bid against each other regularly to price new Green Coupon Bonds. This will improve efficiency and data availability, whilst democratising the global green debt market.
World Scale Green Hydrogen Demonstrator Plant: Built in Saudi Arabia to demonstrate the profitability of Green Hydrogen production and related green or low emission fuel production. This will also foster the formation of the first Green Hydrogen fuels trading hub in the GCC region.
Accelerate the energy transition process by exploring a decarbonisation central bank digital currency (CBDC): Design a new pricing system for carbon and explore the potential for a new digital currency to help states improve their debt sustainability. In particular, new technologies could allow a more accurate valuation of natural assets that could play a valuable role in sovereign debt management and restructuring.
Professor Malik Al Dahlan, the Founder of the Scotia Group, said:
“We urgently need a Decarbonization Marshall Plan. Just as the Arabian Peninsula contributed its natural resources to support energy security for the Developed World in the 20th Century, in the 21st Century it has an opportunity to spearhead a sustainable energy revolution in the Developing World.”
Under Secretary General Jorge Moreira da Silva, the Executive Director of UNOPS, said:
“UNOPS is very proud of being part of this partnership.”
Speakers at the UNGA Event included, H.E. Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs of St. Martin, HE Ambassador Aubrey Webson, Permanent Representative of Antigua and Barbuda to the United Nations and Dr Qiang Liu, Director of Energy Economics Division at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Participants at the UNGA Event included delegations from: Antigua and Barbuda, St. Maarten, Vanuatu, Trinidad and Tobago, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the United States of America, Mexico, the European Union, Afghanistan, African Union, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the United Nations Development Bank, and the Caribbean Development Bank.
The Roadmap for a Global Energy Transition will now be reviewed by UN member states, as well as by AOSIS and UNOPS, and a final version will be published on the RAND Europe website on Monday 2nd October 2023.
Notes to Editors
- The full video of the UNGA Event can be found on United Nations TV here.
- Professor Malik Al Dahlan’s speech can be found here.
- More information about the Scotia Group, its membership and the ‘Climate Majlis Dialogue’ sessions which have been hosted since 2021 is here.
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