Abstract

The article challenges the 1992-era bifurcated approach of the contributors’ base of international climate finance under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. It explores the extent to which the economic growth of several emerging market and developing economies has become an enabler in rendering them non-traditional donors in international climate finance, particularly in relation to the Loss and Damage Fund and the New Collective Quantified Goal on climate finance. The division among parties in international climate negotiations regarding the sharing of responsibility and contribution can be attributed to their differing interpretations of the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities. This principle highlights the need for countries to take into account their varying capacities and historical contributions to climate change. There is no consensus on how to effectively distribute the burden of climate finance among nations. The current economic performance of nations is primarily determined by the value of GDP per capita, measured in absolute terms in 2022 and also in relation to the annual GDP growth rate between 1992 and 2022. The divergence in GDP per capita among the chosen countries and their greenhouse gas emissions per capita in 2022 highlight the necessity to reassess, circumvent, or even officially revise the classification system employed during the 1992 era in line with evolving realities. The economic advancements of the examined countries in the past three decades is to be acknowledged as an enabler for expanding the pool of donors and encouraging non-traditional contributors to support climate finance.