PARIS: Wealthy nations finalized an overdue climate finance pledge to developing countries worth $100 billion on Friday and created a fund for biodiversity and the protection of forests, France鈥檚 president said, according to Reuters.

Emmanuel Macron was speaking at a final panel of a summit in Paris where some 40 leaders, including two dozen from Africa, China鈥檚 prime minister and Brazil鈥檚 president had gathered to give impetus to a new global finance agenda.

Its objective is to boost crisis financing for low-income states and ease their debt burdens, reform post-war financial systems and free up funds to tackle climate change by getting top-level consensus on how to promote a number of initiatives struggling in bodies like the G20, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and UN.

The $100 billion falls far short of poor nations鈥� actual needs, but has become symbolic of wealthy countries鈥� failure to deliver promised climate funds. This has fueled mistrust in climate negotiations between countries attempting to boost CO2-cutting measures.

The World Bank said on Thursday it would ease financing for countries hit by natural disasters and the IMF announced it had hit its target of making $100 billion in special drawing rights available for vulnerable nations.

Of the $100 billion in SDRs to be rechanneled, Washington has yet to pass legislation to release its share, worth more than one-fifth of the total. 

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that it was a priority for the Biden administration to get approval in Congress.