The Standing Committee on Finance (SCF) held its thirty-eighth meeting (SCF 38) on 10-11 September 2025, in Rome, Italy. This was the Committee’s last meeting ahead of COP30, which is going to be held in Belém, Brazil, in November 2025.
The SCF was established under the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC, and subsequently designated to also serve the Paris Agreement in line with its mandates under the COP. The SFC assists the COP and CMA in exercising its functions relating to the financial mechanism including its rationalization; improving coherence and coordination; mobilization of climate finance; as well as measurement, reporting, and verification of support provided by developed country Parties.
The SCF is mandated to convene an annual forum to promote linkages and coherence among climate finance entities. Furthermore, the Committee is mandated to maintain linkages with the Subsidiary Body for Implementation and other thematic bodies; assist the COP and CMA in providing consistent and practical guidance to the operating entities of the financial mechanism through drafting guidance based on the entities’ annual reports and submissions from Parties; recommend measures to the COP and CMA for a more coherent, effective and efficient financial mechanism; provide expertise to the periodic reviews of the financial mechanism; and biennially undertake an assessment providing an over of climate finance flows, among others.
During its 38th meeting last month, the SCF primarily focused on the recently concluded 2025 SCF Forum, defining the scope of the 2026 SCF Forum, potential topics for the 2027 SCF Forum, and the draft guidance to the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism: the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD).
The SCF held its 2025 Forum on “Accelerating climate action and resilience through financing for sustainable food systems and agriculture” on 8-9 September at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Rome, Italy.
As is common practice, the SCF agreed to prepare the summary report of the Forum after SCF 38, under the guidance of the co-facilitators, for consideration and adoption by the SCF and inclusion as part of its annual report to COP30 and CMA7.
At SCF 37, the Committee agreed on the theme for the 2026 Forum: “Financing Climate Action in Water Systems and Ocean.”
During SCF 38, the Committee further discussed the scope for the 2026 Forum, proposing an integrated focus to the Forum that addresses the full water cycle, from source to sea; recognizing the interconnectedness of water systems and ocean ecosystems; with a focus from the local to the national, to regional, to global level.
Climate risks and regional vulnerabilities, such as sea level rise, sea level decline, droughts and water scarcity, storm surges, floods and extreme weather events, including the response to such events, mountain ecosystems and melting glaciers, also form part of the scope of the Forum.
The scope also includes cross-cutting themes such as human mobility and displacement due to climate-related water issues, nature-based solutions, blue economy, and synergies between the three Rio Conventions.
The Forum must always have a link back to climate change and finance. In this sense, the Forum will seek to delve into financing instruments such as blue and green bonds, blended finance models, climate insurance, cooperation models, adaptation finance, among others.
Further elements of the scope refer to technology and innovations, including technology access and transfer of water-efficient systems, desalination, early warning systems, hydropower, and other emerging clean energy technologies.
Finally, the Forum shall keep the focus on climate change finance, ensure balance between mitigation and adaptation, promoting regional and local contextualization and inclusive participation.
The full scope of the 2026 Forum can be found here. As part of the next steps, the SCF will launch a call for inputs by Parties and Non-Party Stakeholders on information and case studies relating to the topic and possible sub-themes of the 2026 SCF Forum. The deadline to submit inputs will be 31 January 2026.
During the meeting, the SCF continued to discuss possible themes for the 2027 Forum. The Committee worked on the basis of themes that had been proposed at SCF 37, and a clustering of themes that had been prepared by the Forum co-facilitators.
The possible themes that have been proposed by members include the topic of access to climate finance; financing the Global Goal on Adaptation; financing technology development and transfer for climate action; financing innovation in emerging climate technologies; carbons markets; financing non-market approaches in addressing climate change; fostering investments in low-emission and climate resilient mobility solutions; financing synergies: climate action, biodiversity and land degradation; and enhancing transparency and mainstreaming the new collective quantified goal on climate finance (NCQG).
There was an additional proposal to have the 2027 Forum be a continuation of the 2026 Forum on Financing Climate Action in Water Systems and Ocean, given the very broad nature of this topic which could benefit from being discussed over two years.
The SCF was unable to agree on a theme for 2027 at this meeting, agreeing to continue their consideration of the 2027 SCF Forum at its thirty-ninth meeting (SCF 39) on the basis of the discussions at SCF 38 and further intersessional work by the Forum co-facilitators.
One of the core mandates of the SCF is to prepare the draft guidance for the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism of the Convention with a view to improving the consistency and practicality of such guidance.
Parties and constituted bodies of the Convention submitted their views and recommendations for each of the three Funds (GCF, GEF, and FRLD) based on the annual reports published by their respective Boards for consideration of the COP and CMA. The SCF then prepared the draft guidance based on these submissions, compiling and analyzing them, clustering them thematically.
The Committee agreed to forward the draft guidance along with an explanatory note to COP30 and CMA7 for their consideration.
The SCF agreed on the dates of its meetings for 2026.
The venue for the SCF Forum and SCF 41 is still to be decided upon by the Committee.
Elena Pereira is the lead negotiator for Honduras and one of the lead negotiators for AILAC on climate finance. She has over 10 years of experience in international development, working with government and international cooperation agencies on climate change mitigation and adaptation actions. As a climate finance advisor, she is currently supporting the Honduran government in the development of the national climate finance policy in the context of the country’s Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plan. Ms. Pereira holds an MSc in Carbon Finance from the University of Edinburgh.
The Standing Committee on Finance (SCF) held its thirty-eighth meeting (SCF 38) on 10-11 September 2025, in Rome, Italy. This was the Committee’s last meeting ahead of COP30, which is going to be held in Belém, Brazil, in November 2025.
The SCF was established under the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC, and subsequently designated to also serve the Paris Agreement in line with its mandates under the COP. The SFC assists the COP and CMA in exercising its functions relating to the financial mechanism including its rationalization; improving coherence and coordination; mobilization of climate finance; as well as measurement, reporting, and verification of support provided by developed country Parties.
The SCF is mandated to convene an annual forum to promote linkages and coherence among climate finance entities. Furthermore, the Committee is mandated to maintain linkages with the Subsidiary Body for Implementation and other thematic bodies; assist the COP and CMA in providing consistent and practical guidance to the operating entities of the financial mechanism through drafting guidance based on the entities’ annual reports and submissions from Parties; recommend measures to the COP and CMA for a more coherent, effective and efficient financial mechanism; provide expertise to the periodic reviews of the financial mechanism; and biennially undertake an assessment providing an over of climate finance flows, among others.
During its 38th meeting last month, the SCF primarily focused on the recently concluded 2025 SCF Forum, defining the scope of the 2026 SCF Forum, potential topics for the 2027 SCF Forum, and the draft guidance to the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism: the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD).
The SCF held its 2025 Forum on “Accelerating climate action and resilience through financing for sustainable food systems and agriculture” on 8-9 September at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Rome, Italy.
As is common practice, the SCF agreed to prepare the summary report of the Forum after SCF 38, under the guidance of the co-facilitators, for consideration and adoption by the SCF and inclusion as part of its annual report to COP30 and CMA7.
At SCF 37, the Committee agreed on the theme for the 2026 Forum: “Financing Climate Action in Water Systems and Ocean.”
During SCF 38, the Committee further discussed the scope for the 2026 Forum, proposing an integrated focus to the Forum that addresses the full water cycle, from source to sea; recognizing the interconnectedness of water systems and ocean ecosystems; with a focus from the local to the national, to regional, to global level.
Climate risks and regional vulnerabilities, such as sea level rise, sea level decline, droughts and water scarcity, storm surges, floods and extreme weather events, including the response to such events, mountain ecosystems and melting glaciers, also form part of the scope of the Forum.
The scope also includes cross-cutting themes such as human mobility and displacement due to climate-related water issues, nature-based solutions, blue economy, and synergies between the three Rio Conventions.
The Forum must always have a link back to climate change and finance. In this sense, the Forum will seek to delve into financing instruments such as blue and green bonds, blended finance models, climate insurance, cooperation models, adaptation finance, among others.
Further elements of the scope refer to technology and innovations, including technology access and transfer of water-efficient systems, desalination, early warning systems, hydropower, and other emerging clean energy technologies.
Finally, the Forum shall keep the focus on climate change finance, ensure balance between mitigation and adaptation, promoting regional and local contextualization and inclusive participation.
The full scope of the 2026 Forum can be found here. As part of the next steps, the SCF will launch a call for inputs by Parties and Non-Party Stakeholders on information and case studies relating to the topic and possible sub-themes of the 2026 SCF Forum. The deadline to submit inputs will be 31 January 2026.
During the meeting, the SCF continued to discuss possible themes for the 2027 Forum. The Committee worked on the basis of themes that had been proposed at SCF 37, and a clustering of themes that had been prepared by the Forum co-facilitators.
The possible themes that have been proposed by members include the topic of access to climate finance; financing the Global Goal on Adaptation; financing technology development and transfer for climate action; financing innovation in emerging climate technologies; carbons markets; financing non-market approaches in addressing climate change; fostering investments in low-emission and climate resilient mobility solutions; financing synergies: climate action, biodiversity and land degradation; and enhancing transparency and mainstreaming the new collective quantified goal on climate finance (NCQG).
There was an additional proposal to have the 2027 Forum be a continuation of the 2026 Forum on Financing Climate Action in Water Systems and Ocean, given the very broad nature of this topic which could benefit from being discussed over two years.
The SCF was unable to agree on a theme for 2027 at this meeting, agreeing to continue their consideration of the 2027 SCF Forum at its thirty-ninth meeting (SCF 39) on the basis of the discussions at SCF 38 and further intersessional work by the Forum co-facilitators.
One of the core mandates of the SCF is to prepare the draft guidance for the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism of the Convention with a view to improving the consistency and practicality of such guidance.
Parties and constituted bodies of the Convention submitted their views and recommendations for each of the three Funds (GCF, GEF, and FRLD) based on the annual reports published by their respective Boards for consideration of the COP and CMA. The SCF then prepared the draft guidance based on these submissions, compiling and analyzing them, clustering them thematically.
The Committee agreed to forward the draft guidance along with an explanatory note to COP30 and CMA7 for their consideration.
The SCF agreed on the dates of its meetings for 2026.
The venue for the SCF Forum and SCF 41 is still to be decided upon by the Committee.
