Thank you, Chair.
I speak on behalf of the LGMA constituency of local, regional and subnational governments.
Let me begin by recalling one point of principle:
Local and Regional Governments are part of national climate-finance systems.
We are governments;
we implement between 70 and 80% of the actions needed to deliver the Paris Agreement, thus we are national governments’ first partners in turning climate commitments into investment, public services and resilient communities.
We are part of the same public effort: making the financial architecture work better across all levels of government so countries can access, mobilise and deploy more mitigation and adaptation-focused resources, with greater impact.
Evidence shows that countries are stronger when their local and regional governments are financially equipped to deliver.
Where responsibilities, fiscal capacity and financial institutions are aligned, they become powerful partners in expanding the national investment base.
The LGMA has developed a comprehensive set of experience-based recommendations around climate finance.
Some building blocks of our proposal already exist.
Our joint task is to connect them, and bring them to scale.
First, Country Platforms for Localizing Finance are being developed in Cameroon and Madagascar, bringing ministries, local and regional governments, their associations and public financial institutions together, to connect national priorities with territorial investment, and build dedicated financing pathways within country-owned systems.
Second, National and subnational development banks can anchor public financial engineering: structuring local-currency finance, guarantees and pooled portfolios around territorial needs.
Strengthening them builds domestic expertise, and the capacity to design and negotiate financing on countries’ own terms.
To address the need for lasting domestic preparation and structuring capacity, FinHubs (which are domestic hubs of financial expertise) can provide permanent, grant-funded teams for project preparation, financial structuring and knowledge transfer.
Finally, Supervised regulatory sandboxes can test financing innovations; pooled and special-purpose vehicles, including off-balance-sheet arrangements, where national fiscal rules permit, can open additional financing routes.
For SIDS, LDCs and other capacity-constrained countries, these arrangements should reflect their own institutional realities: strengthening capital cities, economic and port hubs as investment engines, extending capacity to smaller cities, island communities and rural territories, and equipping domestic financial intermediaries to serve them.
The GCF’s Locally Led Climate Action framework provides effective and efficient guidance and pathways for devolving finance and decision-making, and building lasting local capacity.
To address unfunded preparation and fragmented access, we ask financing partners to resource these country-owned arrangements through existing readiness and grant-based support.
Each investment should leave stronger institutions able to prepare the next one.
The Presidency’s draft Declaration already recognises local delivery, subnational capacity and country platforms, which we celebrate.
We ask that it makes their institutional connection explicit: multilevel country platforms incorporating dedicated subnational financial architectures, supported by partnerships and stronger domestic public financial intermediaries.
The Presidency’s Declaration, the outcomes of this forum, and COP31 can make this convergence concrete.
We ask Parties to carry this focus on subnational access into the Climate Finance Work Programme, while upholding developed-country provision obligations under Article 9.1.
We also invite the Presidencies and the Champions to convene a Global Compact for Multilevel Finance: a voluntary permanent umbrella giving existing initiatives a shared action space to mobilise support, exchange evidence and review progress annually.
It could connect relevant efforts under the Climate Implementation Bridge, the Global Implementation Accelerator, country platforms, LLCA, CHAMP and the newly announced SURFF initiative.
A country’s capacity to act grows when every level of government can contribute its capabilities and resources.
Let COP31 advance the Age of Multilevel Finance: stronger national ambition, financially empowered territories, and public institutions equipped to deliver lasting benefits for their people.
