Global Climate Change: Transfer of Technology, Financial Assistance and Sustainable Economic Development of Developing Countries under the International Legal Framework

Abstract

This thesis seeks to answer the research question: Has the international legal regime governing climate change been effective in transferring technology and providing financial assistance to developing countries? The main reference point or criterion for answering the research question as to “effectiveness” will be based on the deduction that the obligation placed on developed countries to transfer technology and render financial assistance to developing countries is fundamentally at the root of attaining the greenhouse gas stabilisation objective set by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992, among other objectives; and by extension the long-term temperature goal of the Paris Agreement. The scope of issues to be covered in the discourse to be undertaken in this thesis will be guided by the basic consideration that from the ultimate stabilisation objective of the UNFCCC flows other specific and general obligations and commitments of parties relating to mitigation, adaptation, technology, finance, capacity-building, transparency, etc. Thus, any employment of the term “stabilisation objective” ought to be interpreted as liberally as possible in the context of this thesis. This thesis will adopt the critical legal theory to argue that the treaty obligations placed on developed countries to transfer technology and render financial support to developing countries are supposed to be the main drivers of emission reduction and sustainable development in developing countries, if implemented. With cumulative greenhouse gas emissions from developing countries now projected to surpass that of developed countries in a couple of decades, current effort to support mitigation and sustainable development in developing countries becomes all more important thereby justifying an assessment of how the climate regime has fared so far in technologically and financially supporting the objectives of the UNFCCC, with specific reference to developing countries. This thesis will be divided into five chapters. Chapter one will further elaborate the research question and point out necessary limitations, define “developed” and “developing” countries for the purposes of this thesis, and set out the methodology and structure of the thesis. Chapter two will evaluate the international legal regime governing climate change with a view to finding out to what extent the regime has been effective in advancing the attainment of the stabilisation objective of the UNFCCC. Chapter three will undertake a detailed exploration of how the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDRRC) has evolved in governing the relationships between developing and developed countries from the UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol to the Paris Agreement, especially with respect to the main greenhouse gas reduction obligations of the parties, obligations pertaining to implementation, and obligations relating to technology transfer and financial assistance. Chapter four will undertake a critical assessment of the core provisions relating to transfer of technology, financial assistance, and sustainable development of developing countries, with a view to establishing their effectiveness or otherwise, using the stabilisation objective of the UNFCCC as the main criterion. The scope of the chapter will traverse the UNFCCC, the Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement, and relevant Conference of the Parties (COP) decisions, and so on. The final chapter will sum up the key findings in the previous chapters, recommend how to strengthen the Paris Agreement, and propose and expound a tripartite framework that may hold the key to future effective governance, assuming the Paris Agreement does not lead to the desired transformation. Although this thesis will be predominantly argued from the standpoint of developing countries, necessary balance will be maintained throughout the discourse taking into account developments since the negotiation of the UNFCCC in 1992.