UN Secretary-General appeals for great leap towards carbon neutrality

UN Chief Antonio Guterres has called on countries to make a great jump towards carbon neutrality. Guterres was addressing the third annual Bloomberg New Economy Forum, described as “a global town hall” that brings together governments, businesses, technology and academia.

"Every country, city, financial institution and company should adopt plans for transitioning to net zero emissions by 2050."

"By early 2021, countries representing more than 65 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions and more than 70 per cent of the world economy are very likely to have made ambitious commitments to carbon neutrality," Guterres said.

The UN chief emphasized that financial reporting on exposure to climate risks should be made mandatory, while authorities must integrate the carbon neutrality goal into economic and fiscal policies in order to truly transform industry, agriculture, transportation and the energy sector.

However, he stressed those coalitions "cannot be global without developing countries, which will need significant support," acknowledging that the shift to carbon neutrality would not be easy..