国际货币基金组织的气候政策：没有弱势群体的声音？

The climate crisis prompted the International Monetary Fund (IMF), an international lender of last resort, to implement wholesale reforms to incorporate climate policy into its operations. At the IMF, however, selected countries from the Global North, which are also historically the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, dominate decision-making.

Given this, can the Fund implement an ambitious and effective climate policy? And how are climate-vulnerable developing countries and their interests represented in everyday decision-making at the institution? 

A new journal article in Global Policy from Lara Merling and Timon Forster draws on scholarship on the political economy and legitimacy of international organizations to evaluate the IMF’s shift toward climate change. An empirical analysis of 57 climate-vulnerable developing countries known as the Vulnerable Group of 20 (V20) at the IMF and within its Executive Board shows that these countries, speaking for almost a third of the Fund’s membership, command a vote share of only 5.6 percent.

Key findings:

• The IMF’s extensive influence over development and its role in the Global Financial Safety Net puts it in a prominent position to shape climate change.
• The countries historically responsible for the most carbon emissions hold disproportionate decision-making power at the IMF, yet those least responsible for and most affected by the climate crisis have little decision-making power at the IMF. 
• Ambitious governance reforms that increase climate-vulnerable developing countries’ voices in decision-making are necessary for a more equitable climate policy, facilitating a global just transition and strengthening the IMF’s legitimacy.

The authors’ assessment of the IMF’s Climate Strategy amplifies equity concerns over its climate policies. Barring meaningful governance reform to increase the voice and representation of climate-vulnerable developing countries, the IMF’s approach to addressing climate change is unlikely to translate into legitimate and effective climate policy.