The leaders of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and United Nations on Friday called upon finance ministers to use fiscal policies, such as carbon taxes, to combat climate change.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde and World Bank President Jim Yong Kim were joined by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon at their 2014 spring meetings to address a group of 46 finance ministers and senior officials on policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde . Credit:AFP

Lagarde said their goal was to explain to ministers and officials what fiscal tools they can use that would benefit the environment while stimulating global economies.

She said she would discuss how to shift taxation from the traditional labour and investment base "to a base that is environmentally correct," she told reporters ahead of the meeting.