Chefchaouen Local Climate Finance Forum calls for scaled, urgent, and people-centered investment to deliver local climate solutions
Chefchaouen, Morocco (9th July, 2025) – The City of Chefchaouen hosted a high-level event on Urban Climate Finance on July 8 and 9, convening national and local leaders, international institutions, and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to spotlight the pivotal role of cities in driving global climate action.
The Chefchaouen Local Climate Finance Forum, co-hosted by the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) and the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, showcased ongoing urban climate initiatives aligned with the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) across Morocco and beyond.
Mayor of Chefchaouen and GCoM Regional Ambassador Mohamed Sefiani, highlighted the city’s Local Climate Action Plan Vision Chefchaouen 2030, as well as energy-efficient street lighting, and food waste management projects supported by the World Bank’s City Climate Finance Gap Fund – a concrete example that finance fuels real implementation on the ground.
Mayor Sefiani was joined at the Forum by over 60 high-level attendees from a variety of sectors including the Moroccan national, regional and local governments, UN-Habitat, as well as representatives from global banks and city climate networks.
This landmark event followed the United Nations 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) earlier this month in Seville, and reinforced a simple but urgent call through the Chefchouen Call for Climate Action in Morocco calling upon the international community to foster stronger cooperation with local and regional governments to close the persistent local climate finance gap.
Mohamed Sefiani, Mayor of Chefchaouen and GCoM Regional Ambassador, said:
“Climate action is not only about protecting our planet – it is about protecting people. It is for people. And it is in cities like Chefchaouen where that change must happen. We are proud to host this important gathering because we believe cities must lead with bold, local solutions. But to truly scale our impact, we need finance that reaches the ground, where lives are changed, where jobs are created, where air is cleaner, and futures are brighter. Chefchaouen is already on the frontline of action, but to do more, we need the support and investment that will allow local ambition to meet global impact.”
During the two-day event local leaders and experts advocated for Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to advance local funding and simplify financial access to ensure cities are seen as accountable leaders in the climate transition. It also advanced the CHAMP Coalition pledge with key finance recommendations for national governments to finance local climate action and demonstrate that climate finance is a solution-oriented agenda, driving health, jobs, and sustainability where it matters most.
Advancing Urban Climate Finance: From Commitment to Implementation
Earlier this year, during the World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C., in April, MDBs and subnational leaders met at the roundtable “Scaling Sustainable Investment in Cities: The Role of MDBs”. This gathering, convened by C40 Cities, GCoM and Bloomberg Philanthropies represented an important milestone in efforts to bridge the gap between current levels of urban climate investment and what cities truly need.
It was a direct outcome of last year’s mayors’ call on national governments and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) to increase public investment for urban climate finance to a minimum of US$800 billion annually by 2030. In November 2024, MDBs issued a joint statement in November 2024 expressing support for the mayors’ demands and reaffirming their commitment to accelerate urban climate finance.
Andy Deacon, Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM) Co-Managing Director, said:
“Chefchaouen is at the forefront of climate action, not just in ambition, but in real delivery. Cities are where climate commitments become real, where plans turn into cleaner air, green jobs, and better lives for people. But none of this happens without investment. If we want to deliver on the global climate agenda, we need to back cities with the funding they need to lead. That’s why this moment in Chefchaouen matters: it’s about turning ambition into action, right where it counts.”
Guidance Report: Increasing Finance for Subnational Climate Action
Earlier this year, C40 Cities and GCoM released a report, during the Green and Resilient Urbanshift Africa Forum 2025, in Nairobi, Kenya, titled How National Governments Can Increase Finance for Subnational Climate Action. This report was developed with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies, as a resource for national government members of CHAMP, to provide them with implementation options, proven financial techniques, and coordination frameworks that can significantly increase finance for subnational climate action – in line with their CHAMP pledge. Access the full report here.
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About the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM)
GCoM is the largest global alliance for city climate leadership, uniting a global coalition of over 13,700 cities and local governments and 100+ supporting partners. The cities and partners of GCoM share a long-term vision of supporting voluntary action to combat climate change and towards a resilient and low-emission society. GCoM serves cities and local governments by mobilizing and supporting ambitious, measurable, planned climate and energy action in their communities by working with city/regional networks, national governments, and other partners to achieve our vision. Led today by UN Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions Michael R. Bloomberg and European Commission Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera, the coalition comprises cities across 6 continents and 147 countries, representing over 1 billion people or more than 13 percent of the global population.
To learn more about GCoM, please visit our website, or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
About C40 Cities
C40 is a network of nearly 100 mayors of the world’s leading cities working to deliver the urgent action needed right now to confront the climate crisis and create a future where everyone, everywhere, can thrive. Mayors of C40 cities are committed to using a science-based and people-focused approach to limit global heating in line with the Paris Agreement and build healthy, equitable and resilient communities. We work alongside a broad coalition of representatives from labour, business, the youth climate movement and civil society to support mayors to halve emissions by 2030 and help phase out fossil use while increasing urban climate resilience and equity.
The current co-chairs of C40 are Mayor Sadiq Khan of London, United Kingdom, and Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr of Freetown, Sierra Leone; three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the Board. C40’s work is made possible by our three strategic funders: Bloomberg Philanthropies, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation and Realdania.
To learn more about the work of C40 and our cities, please visit our website or follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.