COP30 | REDESCA urges placing fiscal justice at the center of climate finance with a human rights–based approach

November 14, 2025

Washington, D.C. — The Special Rapporteurship on Economic, Social, Cultural, and Environmental Rights (REDESCA) of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) expresses concern over the insufficient financial response to the climate emergency and calls on States to agree to ambitious, verifiable, and rights-based commitments at COP30 in Belem. REDESCA has recognized that climate change is among the greatest threats to the enjoyment of rights in the Americas. The region is already facing significant human and economic losses from extreme events, which requires accelerating climate action grounded in social justice.

REDESCA takes note of the advances made at COP29 -including higher annual contributions from developed countries-; however, climate finance flows remain insufficient and inequitably distributed, hindering transition policies in the countries and communities that suffer the most impacts and lack the resources to fund them, while those with the greatest historical responsibility for emissions have insufficiently met their climate finance obligations. In particular, initial contributions to the Loss and Damage Fund fall far short of estimated annual losses; closing this gap requires new and additional resources—preferably in the form of grants and other non-debt instruments—and equitable allocation in line with historical responsibilities and capabilities so as not to exacerbate the burden on the most vulnerable nations. COP30 and the Baku-to-Belém Roadmap should result in a credible and verifiable plan that removes access barriers and prioritizes predictable, additional, and innovative public finance.

Consistent with Advisory Opinion 32/25 of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the obligation of cooperation encompasses “all necessary measures” to respond comprehensively to the climate emergency -including addressing loss and damage- and must be carried out in good faith, taking into account common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities. Within this framework, developed States must lead in providing financial resources and in promoting an open and enabling international economic system that allows developing countries to implement measures for mitigation, adaptation, and responses to loss and damage, in line with their obligations under the climate regime and inter-American standards.

To ensure fiscal–climate coherence, REDESCA calls for coordinating the outcomes of COP30 in Belém with the simultaneous negotiations in Nairobi toward a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation. This process can curb illicit financial flows, expand transparency and the automatic exchange of information, and open the door to innovative sources of public revenue—for example, windfall profit taxes on fossil fuels, levies on international transport emissions, and the gradual phaseout of fossil fuel subsidies—channeling those resources toward a just transition. REDESCA emphasizes that climate justice and fiscal justice are inseparable and must advance in a coordinated manner.

Domestically, States should embed a fiscal-justice lens in climate policy through progressive tax and budget frameworks that redistribute resources toward community resilience, ensure transparency and accountability, and guarantee informed, effective participation. This requires full respect for the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities—including free, prior, and informed consent—as well as for women, youth, and other groups in vulnerable situations; the conduct of environmental, climate, and human rights impact assessments; and the adoption of integrity safeguards. Consequently, States must ensure safe environments for participation by rights-holders and prevent undue influence by economic actors linked to the fossil-fuel value chain, as well as any other private interests that could create conflicts of interest in policy design and implementation.

REDESCA reiterates its willingness to assist States in fulfilling their climate obligations and to monitor that the outcomes of COP30 are translated into public policies with a focus on human rights and fiscal justice.

The Special Rapporteurship on Economic, Social, Cultural, and Environmental Rights is an office created by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to strengthen the promotion and protection of economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights in the Americas, leading the Commission’s efforts in this area.

The IACHR is a principal and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), whose mandate stems from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has the mandate to promote the observance and defense of human rights in the region and acts as an advisory body to the OAS on the matter. The IACHR is made up of seven independent members who are elected by the OAS General Assembly in their personal capacity, and do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. RD230/25

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