At COP29, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu urged world leaders to set an ambitious new climate finance goal to ensure that vulnerable nations, especially Small Island Developing States (SIDS), are not left behind. Speaking at the High-Level Roundtable on "Enabling Climate Finance - The Make-or-Break Moment for a Sustainable Future," held on the sidelines of the conference, President Dr Muizzu emphasised the urgency of climate finance reform.

In his address, President Dr Muizzu highlighted the need for innovative financial strategies, calling for debt forgiveness linked to climate milestones. He argued that the vulnerabilities faced by SIDS should be viewed not as burdens but as opportunities for global investment in sustainable resilience. Transforming the global financial system to prioritise climate action is essential, he noted, urging official creditors and private lenders to work together to offer favourable terms and extended repayment timelines.

President Dr Muizzu also underscored the transformative role the private sector could play if incentivised properly, noting that these partnerships could unlock significant potential for climate resilience. "This is a make-or-break moment," he asserted in closing. "Inaction, or even delayed action, is not an option for countries like mine. Let’s not break it; let’s make it—for the future."

The high-level roundtable, part of COP29’s World Leaders Summit hosted by Azerbaijan, gathered leaders, International Financial Institutions (IFIs), and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to advance climate finance goals. Discussions focused on the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) as a foundation for progressing towards the Paris Agreement’s ambitions.

With this call to action, President Dr Muizzu reinforced the Maldives’ commitment to transforming climate commitments into practical steps for resilience and sustainability.