Proponents argue the gap in climate finance is growing too large to ignore, and taxing aviation could help narrow it.
Alida Ban Pavlovic
Efforts to mobilise fresh climate finance are circling back to aviation and shipping, as UN bodies and international organisations revisit old proposals with new urgency.
The aviation industry, in particular, is once again in the crosshairs. Ideas floated at recent climate summits include a levy on jet fuel, a frequent flyer tax, and charges targeting private aviation. But pushback has been swift, especially from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), which sees these suggestions as a threat to its decades-long efforts to create a unified global approach to emissions.
Proponents argue the gap in climate finance is growing too large to ignore. More than $1.7 trillion went into clean energy investments in 2023. But according to Creon Butler of Chatham House, the global climate finance need stands at $8 trillion a year today—set to rise to $10 trillion annually after 2030.
Back in 2009, wealthy nations pledged to raise $100 billion annually to help developing countries respond to the climate crisis. That figure was overhauled at COP29 in Baku, where a new goal of $300 billion per year was set, potentially rising to at least $1.3 trillion annually by 2035.
It’s this shortfall that spurred the formation of the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force at COP28. The group—jointly led by France, Kenya, and Barbados—launched the Coalition for Global Solidarities to advocate for new climate funding solutions, with support from 17 countries, most from the Global South.
The urgency is particularly clear when it comes to adaptation. The United Nations Environment Programme estimates the global adaptation finance gap at between \$194 billion and \$366 billion a year. Current international public flows fall far short of that benchmark.
One major contributor to rising emissions is air travel. Passenger numbers are projected to more than double by 2050, a surge that will drive up fuel consumption and put pressure on emissions targets.
At COP29, the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force proposed a slate of funding mechanisms. Among them: a tax on aviation kerosene implemented by a “coalition of the willing,” a fuel levy on private jets, and a ticket surcharge targeting luxury flights or frequent flyers.
The logic is simple. Aviation fuel is often exempt from VAT and sales tax, leaving room for the sector to shoulder more of the climate finance burden. The Task Force’s report argued that taxing fossil fuels in aviation is one of the most efficient ways to price emissions and generate revenue—but warned that any plan would need to address fairness and competitive balance.
Modeling shows the potential upside. A €0.33 per litre global levy on jet fuel for international flights could raise around €18 billion ($19 billion) annually. A frequent flyer levy—starting at $9 for a second flight and climbing to $177 for a twentieth within the same year—could yield $121 billion each year.
Still, resistance remains. ICAO called the proposals “deeply concerning,” warning they could undermine the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), a system that took years to develop as a global market-based measure for aviation emissions.
CORSIA is designed to prevent a fragmented regulatory landscape by ensuring that emissions from international aviation are accounted for just once. ICAO’s position is that duplicative regional or national measures could unravel the consensus behind the scheme.
There’s also confusion around legal constraints. ICAO clarified that the Chicago Convention doesn’t prohibit all taxes on aviation fuel. What it bars is the taxation of fuel already onboard an aircraft. Taxes on fuel uptake remain legally viable.
The organisation has urged stakeholders to back CORSIA as the only global mechanism for managing international aviation’s carbon footprint. It views the system as a safeguard against a patchwork of regulations that could slow progress and increase complexity.
Despite the tensions, there are examples where aviation levies have worked. France’s Solidarity Levy—known as UNITAID—has been taxing air tickets since 2006, raising around €1 billion between 2006 and 2013 and €227 million annually since 2016. The funds go toward global health programs for HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, particularly in low-income countries.
Beyond aviation, global negotiations are underway that could shift the broader tax landscape. Talks on the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation are focusing on closing gaps that prevent many countries, especially in the developing world, from collecting revenues tied to the digital economy and cross-border activity.
The convention could also help align global tax regimes with environmental goals. Environmental taxes—targeting fossil fuel extraction, aviation, and shipping—are being discussed as tools that could help nations expand their tax base while tackling climate change.
The aim is to complete the convention and its protocols by 2027.
The International Institute for Sustainable Development has suggested that a global coalition could overcome current roadblocks at ICAO and begin negotiating more ambitious agreements. Such an approach, they argue, could also push improvements in aircraft fuel efficiency and speed up adoption of sustainable aviation fuels.
What remains is whether political will can match financial need. As climate targets tighten and the funding deficit grows, the real question may no longer be technical, but moral: can the world afford not to ask its most frequent flyers to help pay for its future?
Second Eye Africa
