Green Growth Should Become Driver Of COVID-19 Economic Recovery - EU Commission Official

Green Growth Should Become Driver of COVID-19 Economic Recovery - EU Commission Official

Advancing climate action and building a sustainable future may boost economic growth if green investments feature alongside economic recovery efforts in national budgets following the COVID-19 pandemic, Anthony Agotha, the senior diplomatic officer of cabinet to European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans, said on Tuesday

ST. PETERSBURG (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th October, 2020) Advancing climate action and building a sustainable future may boost economic growth if green investments feature alongside economic recovery efforts in national budgets following the COVID-19 pandemic, Anthony Agotha, the senior diplomatic officer of cabinet to European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans, said on Tuesday.

"It begins with, again, the political commitment of the leaders, who very quickly said we will couple recovery with the green transition. So that's where it started, and I think that's important because there's a false contradiction between growing and a green transition. The green transition is not a luxury we cannot afford. In fact, we cannot afford not to do it," Agotha said at the Friends of Europe's Climate and Energy Summit that is being held online.

According to the European Commission official, member states have been tasked with drafting their own domestic recovery plans, in which, 37 percent of funds should be earmarked for action on climate change. Agotha said that these efforts could bring economic growth, while also ensuring the health and wellbeing of people across the bloc.

"The point is, these are not tree-hugging luxury visions, these are serious visions. We try to reform because we think it's going to be good for the people. This is for health, wellbeing, and for growth," the European Commission official said.

The annual summit brought together senior decision-makers and leaders from governments, industry, and civil society to discuss the climate emergency, energy innovations, and the role that Europe can play in advancing climate action against the backdrop of the ongoing pandemic.

After assuming office as European Commission president this past December, Ursula von der Leyen pledged to make the European Union climate neutral by 2050. The bloc has already made a commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent by 2030.

The bloc has also gone to great lengths to help member states recover from the economic hardship created by the COVID-19 pandemic. After four days of tough negotiations in Brussels this past July, the leaders of the member states agreed on an economic recovery fund worth 750 billion Euros ($887 billion), consisting of 390 billion euros in grants and 360 billion euros in repayable loans.

At the same meeting, EU leaders also agreed that the bloc's budget for 2021-2027 will be set at 1.074 trillion euros.