The primary objective of the Paris summit, which opens on Thursday, is “to recreate [une] confidence” between the countries of the South and the countries of the North and “forget the difficulties which may have opposed us”, explains the Minister of Foreign Affairs to franceinfo.
Catherine Colonna, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, wishes Thursday June 22 on franceinfo a “consensus to create a shock and a real transformation” funding for developing countries, while the summit for a “new financial pact”, chaired by Emmanuel Macron, opens Thursday in Paris.
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“We must rethink the international financial system, which no longer works sufficiently to ensure both a capacity for development and the fight against inequalities and to fight against climate change”, explains Catherine Colonna. The primary objective of the Paris summit is “to recreate this trust” between the countries of the South and the countries of the North. It’s necessary “get everyone back to work together” And “forget the difficulties that may have opposed us”underlines the minister.
franceinfo: How to find these colossal sums to fight against poverty and global warming ?
Catherine Colonna: We are living through a very special historic moment which can be serious and therefore we must act so that it does not become even more serious. For the first time in decades, inequalities in the world are increasing sharply and poverty is also increasing. Tens of millions of people are plunged into extreme poverty. We must therefore rethink the international financial system, which no longer works sufficiently to ensure both a capacity for development and the fight against these inequalities, to fight against climate change.
What is the concrete ambition?
The ambition in Paris is to reach a new consensus on the principles and priorities of a profound reform of the international financial system, by repeating solidarity, by helping developing countries to have easier access to international financing, to have more and faster.
“We must take into account the particular situation of countries which are both very indebted and very vulnerable to climate change and which must not be faced with this impossible choice between the fight against poverty, their development or the consequences they suffer from climatic shocks.
Catherine Colonna, Minister of Foreign Affairsat franceinfo
It will also be necessary to make the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank work better together. The appointment of a new president of the World Bank, clearly more sensitive to these issues than his predecessor, will help us create this consensus to create a shock and a real transformation.
Should these two monetary institutions be reformed?
They have very largely succeeded in their mission, but which corresponded to the time when they were set up. Today, it is necessary to reform and some even say to transform them. We must go further in a different conception of their role which, today, does not make it possible to respond to the major problems facing the world, in particular the dual problems of development and climate change combined.
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What does France propose for this summit?
As far as we are concerned, we continue to keep our climate commitments to contribute to this transition, which must be supported financially by the developed countries, to the tune of 100 billion dollars per year. We are doing our part, the European Union is doing its part. We must call on others to do theirs. It is possible to use another mechanism which is the special drawing rights, the IMF reserves. The target was set at 20% special drawing rights. These reserves must be used by increasing them in order, as a matter of priority, to allow developing countries to benefit from them. France makes 30%. It would be good to call everyone who has not yet reached their goal to do and do it quickly.
But isn’t there all the same a problem of trust between the countries of the South and the countries of the North?
There is a problem of trust, and if we let this situation continue, the fragmentation of the world which we see brings many dangers, obviously also on the geopolitical level, would undoubtedly be even more problematic than it is is today. The primary objective of the Paris summit is to recreate this trust, to get everyone back to work together, to forget the difficulties that have sometimes opposed us and to seek common solutions.
“We have a lot more to do together than we think and we can do it. It’s a message of trust that we want to send out from Paris too, with a consensus that you will perhaps call ‘the Paris consensus’ .”
Catherine Colonna, Minister of Foreign Affairsat franceinfo