Barbados has endorsed a two-year work plan for a new International Tax Task Force (ITTF) to ensure all industries and people contribute to financing the fight against climate change.
As a co-host of the task force, Barbados joined other founding member countries, including Kenya, France, Ireland, Spain, Antigua and Barbuda, and the Marshall Islands, in backing the plan during the ITTF’s first official meeting in the US capital. The task force’s newest member, Colombia, also participated in the conference.
The goal of the ITTF is to raise additional finance for equitable climate and development action.
“The new avenues of taxation that we will be exploring in the task force can be a powerful lever that, alongside traditional financing from governments, international financial institutions and the private sector, will unlock the necessary resources for climate adaptation and mitigation,” said Dr Arnold McIntyre, principal technical advisor for the Government of Barbados.
The work plan is intended to take into account the pollution induced by the activities of various industries and individuals. The task force, which is led and co-chaired by Kenya, Barbados and France, will bring governments together to foster political will and advance options for international climate taxes that could significantly contribute to closing the annual funding gap for developing and vulnerable countries which experts estimate at $2.4 trillion by 2030.
“Together we will be developing equitable proposals to apply levies targeting the most polluting sectors and individuals, with the aim of supporting the most climate-vulnerable people and countries who have contributed least to rising global greenhouse gas emissions,” added Dr McIntyre.
The ITTF plans to consider design options for each levy by taking stock of existing levies and conducting a literature review, before launching impact studies over the summer. The task force aims to put forward proposals and promote international agreements on one or several tax options at the United Nations climate change conference, COP30, in autumn 2025.
“These agreements can be implemented by relevant decision-makers, and by coalitions of countries ready to commit to implementing new tax options at domestic level or in a relevant international forum, to generate more fairness and equity in the current global tax system,” a statement from the meeting concluded.
The inaugural meeting coincided with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group’s Spring Meetings in Washington, DC. (EJ)
