From 22-23 March 2022, the Standing Committee on Finance (SCF) convened for its 27th meeting. The meeting took place in Cape Town, South Africa, and was conducted in a hybrid format, which means that some SCF members and observers were present, while others participated virtually. Facilitated by the newly appointed Co-Chairs Mr. Zaheer Fakir (South Africa) and Ms. Gertraud Wollansky (Austria), the meeting focused on the mandates received from COP26 and CMA3, including work on definitions of climate finance, work relating to Article 2, paragraph 1(c), of the Paris Agreement, and a report on progress towards achieving the goal of mobilizing jointly USD 100 billion per year. Further items discussed were the status quo of the Fifth Biennial Assessment and Overview of Climate Finance Flows, which included guidance and feedback on the zero-order draft as well as on the work plan and timeline. In addition, SCF members discussed the preparations of Part II of the Forum on Finance for Nature-based Solutions, for which the date and location still has to be defined. Moreover, there was an update on the focal points for the thematic areas and bodies. The SCF27 meeting will be followed by the “First Technical Expert Dialogue under the Ad hoc Work Programme on the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on Climate Finance”, also taking place in Cape Town, for which multiple SCF members act as speakers or workshop facilitators. SCF27 was therefore concluded by an exchange with the Co-Chairs of the new ad hoc work programme, who will embark also on a continuous consultation with the SCF.
