Germany has announced substantial development pledges totalling more than €1.2 billion, which approximately account for INR 10,025 crore, to boost India’s battle against climate change and renewable energy development.
This declaration came during a visit by a delegation from Germany’s Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development.
Germany has allocated €713 million for energy, €409 million for urban development, and €90 million for agroecology and natural resources in its current promises. These initiatives will involve aiding India’s efforts to increase solar power output as well.
According to German Ambassador Walter Lindner, development assistance and the fight against climate change are among the primary focal areas of India-Germany cooperation.
Furthermore, he stated during a news conference that, it’s impossible to tackle any major global issues, without Indians, including climate change. We endeavour to collaborate with India on climate change, renewable energy, and similar programmes, which helps us strive toward our own goals, which we committed at COP26 in Glasgow.
“While we try to support India, we fulfil our own goals promised in Glasgow. Here, we assist India in a range of projects across the country that is huge in dimension.” he added.
The German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Director-General, Professor Dr Claudia Warning, stated:
“India is the biggest development cooperation partner for Germany. This cooperation of 63 years is based on a strong foundation of shared values and vision. Both countries have borne the brunt of climate change.”
The Indo-German partnership is based on four important global trends, which happen to be climate change, urbanization, natural resource degradation, and pressure on democracy and society.
Dr Warning expressed that Germany wishes to deepen this relationship even further, and so stays devoted to its relationship with the citizens of India.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report issued earlier this year, both India and Germany would see more extreme weather events as a result of climate change.
Proving the statement to be true, she further added, “More than 180 people lost their lives in Germany in July; 170 people died in cyclone Tauktae in Western India,”
A stringent climate neutrality strategy is the only way ahead, as both countries contribute about 9% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
According to a statement issued by the German Embassy, during COP26, India and Germany agreed to entirely phase out coal power. Germany is taking steps to phase out coal by 2038. While India has already committed to retiring 50 GW of coal plants by 2027 and has just entered an international coal transition programme supported by Germany and funded by the Climate Investment Funds.
