Mayor Abby attends UNESCO Climate Finance Roundtable
Published Jun 27, 2023 05:57 am
Makati City Mayor Abby Binay brought her campaign to promote sustainability and climate change action to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a participant to the Cities Climate Finance Roundtable at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France.
Makati City Mayor Abby Binay
The event is part of the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact organized by COP28 Presidency and Bloomberg Philanthropies, together with C40 Cities, Global Covenant of Mayors (GCoM), and Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance (CCFLA). In 2021, GCoM appointed Binay to its Board of mayors and leaders to represent Southeast Asia on the GCoM Mayoral Board. The mayor said that her participation in the discussion allowed her to learn new ideas and solutions in helping solve climate change and climate financing, which she said claimed to be the biggest challenge in climate action. "Ang pinakamalaking challenge sa climate action ay ang mapagkukunan ng pondo para sa mga programa ng mga lungsod o bansa. Magastos ang green initiatives. Halimbawa na lang ang Makati Subway (MkTr) ay nagkakahalaga ng P192 billion! Isipin n’yo na lang kung hindi ito public-private partnership (PPP) kung saan tayo kukuha ng ganyang halaga para sa isang proyekto na magbababa ng Greenhouse Gas emissions sa Makati at mag-i-improve ng mobility ng mga residente (The biggest challenge in climate action is the sourcing of funds for the programs of cities and countries. Green initiatives are costly investments. For example, the Makati City Subway costs P192 billion! Just imagine, if the project was not a public-private partnership, where can the city government find the funds for it which will greatly help mitigate Makati's Greenhouse Gas emissions and improve the residents' mobility)," she explained. MkTr is an 11-kilometer underground rapid transit line that will link establishments across the Makati business district. The system will have two tracks, 10 underground stations, and air-conditioned coaches which can accommodate 200 persons per car. It will also have a train yard, maintenance depot, and central command center at ground level. Binay added that the city government's smart electric buses program is also another sustainability program of her administration made possible by PPPs. Last year, Makati City and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the establishment of the smart public transport system in the city. The $13-million partnership includes the development of a public transportation master plan, establishment of a public transport information and communications technology (ICT) system, pilot operation of electric vehicle (EV) bus service, establishment of an EV bus depot, and capacity building of officials and personnel. The city government will provide the lands for the construction of the EV bus depot and parking area, oversee the implementation of the project, and secure a sufficient amount from its budget to cover the expenses required for the operation of the project, including the cost of proper storage, utilities for operation, and maintenance of ICT system and EV buses. The mayor said that the construction of the EV bus depot, control center, ICT system, and other facilities started during the first quarter of 2023 and is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2025. "Isang malaking bahagi ng roundtable discussion sa Paris ang mga paraan kung paano mapapadali ang pag-secure ng mga lungsod ng tulong pinansyal sa mga Multilateral Development Banks (MDB) para sa kanilang climate action efforts. Sa tulong ng MDBs, pwedeng maka-abante ng malayo-layo ang mga lungsod na nagpaplano ring magpatupad ng kanilang climate crisis mitigation efforts (A big part of the roundtable discussion in Paris is finding ways on how to make it easier for other cities to secure funds for their climate action efforts through Multilateral Development Banks. With the help of MDBs, it will be much faster for cities to formulate and implement their climate crisis mitigation efforts)," the local chief said.
Makati City Mayor Abby Binay
The event is part of the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact organized by COP28 Presidency and Bloomberg Philanthropies, together with C40 Cities, Global Covenant of Mayors (GCoM), and Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance (CCFLA). In 2021, GCoM appointed Binay to its Board of mayors and leaders to represent Southeast Asia on the GCoM Mayoral Board. The mayor said that her participation in the discussion allowed her to learn new ideas and solutions in helping solve climate change and climate financing, which she said claimed to be the biggest challenge in climate action. "Ang pinakamalaking challenge sa climate action ay ang mapagkukunan ng pondo para sa mga programa ng mga lungsod o bansa. Magastos ang green initiatives. Halimbawa na lang ang Makati Subway (MkTr) ay nagkakahalaga ng P192 billion! Isipin n’yo na lang kung hindi ito public-private partnership (PPP) kung saan tayo kukuha ng ganyang halaga para sa isang proyekto na magbababa ng Greenhouse Gas emissions sa Makati at mag-i-improve ng mobility ng mga residente (The biggest challenge in climate action is the sourcing of funds for the programs of cities and countries. Green initiatives are costly investments. For example, the Makati City Subway costs P192 billion! Just imagine, if the project was not a public-private partnership, where can the city government find the funds for it which will greatly help mitigate Makati's Greenhouse Gas emissions and improve the residents' mobility)," she explained. MkTr is an 11-kilometer underground rapid transit line that will link establishments across the Makati business district. The system will have two tracks, 10 underground stations, and air-conditioned coaches which can accommodate 200 persons per car. It will also have a train yard, maintenance depot, and central command center at ground level. Binay added that the city government's smart electric buses program is also another sustainability program of her administration made possible by PPPs. Last year, Makati City and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the establishment of the smart public transport system in the city. The $13-million partnership includes the development of a public transportation master plan, establishment of a public transport information and communications technology (ICT) system, pilot operation of electric vehicle (EV) bus service, establishment of an EV bus depot, and capacity building of officials and personnel. The city government will provide the lands for the construction of the EV bus depot and parking area, oversee the implementation of the project, and secure a sufficient amount from its budget to cover the expenses required for the operation of the project, including the cost of proper storage, utilities for operation, and maintenance of ICT system and EV buses. The mayor said that the construction of the EV bus depot, control center, ICT system, and other facilities started during the first quarter of 2023 and is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2025. "Isang malaking bahagi ng roundtable discussion sa Paris ang mga paraan kung paano mapapadali ang pag-secure ng mga lungsod ng tulong pinansyal sa mga Multilateral Development Banks (MDB) para sa kanilang climate action efforts. Sa tulong ng MDBs, pwedeng maka-abante ng malayo-layo ang mga lungsod na nagpaplano ring magpatupad ng kanilang climate crisis mitigation efforts (A big part of the roundtable discussion in Paris is finding ways on how to make it easier for other cities to secure funds for their climate action efforts through Multilateral Development Banks. With the help of MDBs, it will be much faster for cities to formulate and implement their climate crisis mitigation efforts)," the local chief said.