Nigeria-led G-24 Demands $300bn Climate Funding, Sweeping IMF Reforms

Developing countries, under Nigeria’s leadership of the Group of Twenty-Four (G-24), have called for at least $300bn in annual climate financing by 2035, sweeping reforms of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and improved debt relief mechanisms.

The demands were contained in a communiqué issued after the group’s 116th ministerial meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, during the IMF–World Bank Annual Meetings, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, chaired the meeting, where ministers raised concerns about rising debt burdens, restricted access to affordable financing and growing economic vulnerabilities in developing countries.

The group warned that geopolitical tensions, rising commodity prices, trade restrictions and increasingly frequent extreme weather events were threatening economic stability across emerging and developing economies.

According to the communiqué, the pressures were raising borrowing costs, weakening currencies and worsening debt distress, leaving highly indebted countries with limited resources to fund development.

The ministers urged the IMF to accelerate reforms of its quota system to reflect changing global economic realities and strengthen the voting power of developing countries.

They insisted that the reforms should protect the representation of emerging economies and the world’s poorest nations in global financial institutions.

The group also called for greater flexibility in IMF-supported financial assistance programmes, arguing that such interventions should protect social spending, encourage investment and avoid excessive economic adjustments that could undermine recovery.

On debt sustainability, the ministers warned that mounting repayment obligations were limiting developing countries’ capacity to invest in infrastructure, healthcare, education and economic transformation.

“Debt vulnerability is a major barrier to inclusive growth in many developing economies,” the communiqué stated.

They advocated more predictable debt restructuring processes, greater transparency, improved credit-rating assessments and stronger coordination among creditors.

The G-24 also welcomed initiatives to strengthen sovereign debt management, including a borrowers’ platform supported by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

The ministers urged the World Bank to expand access to affordable financing through guarantees, risk-sharing arrangements and mechanisms to attract private investment.

They also stressed the need to strengthen domestic capital markets and expand lending in local currencies to reduce exposure to foreign-exchange risks.

On climate finance, the group called for full implementation of the international commitment to mobilise at least $300bn annually by 2035, with developed countries taking the lead in delivering the funding.

It further demanded increased resources for climate adaptation to help vulnerable developing countries cope with the effects of climate change.

The ministers also called for stronger international cooperation against tax avoidance, profit shifting and illicit financial flows, which they said undermined revenue mobilisation in developing economies.

Nigeria’s Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Finance, Raymond Omachi, chaired the G-24 deputies’ meeting ahead of the ministerial session, while Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso participated in the discussions.