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Brussels — Tension this year Ahead of the United Nations Climate Summit in 2020, there is a growing push to demand that vulnerable countries pay compensation to rich countries for the losses suffered by the world's poorest people due to climate change.
When diplomats from nearly 200 nations meet on November 7 at the seaside resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, they will pledge to cut climate change-causing CO2 emissions and reduce deadly climate change. Negotiations will be held to address ways to address existing climate impacts, including Heat waves, wildfires, sea level rise, drought.
But another issue is likely to dominate the negotiations: 'loss and damage', or housing, infrastructure in the poorest countries that contribute the least to global warming. , and climate-related disruption to life.
According to the United Nations, the world's 46 least developed countries have 14% of the world's population and emit just 1% of the world's annual CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels. .
As COP27 losses from climate change are skyrocketing in rich and poor countries alike. In recent weeks, wildfires have engulfed vast tracts of land in Morocco, Greece and Canada, drought ravaged Italy's vineyards and deadly floods hit the Gambia and China.
"This was a watershed moment. We were affected and we have been talking about it for a long time. But now rich countries are being affected as well," he said.
Wealthy countries will also contribute $100 billion annually by 2020, increasing the number of poor It failed to deliver on promises to help countries cut emissions and prepare for climate change. Loss and damage payments add to that $100 billion.
“It's not ambiguous. Finance is about money. It means putting your hand in your pocket, taking out dollars, euros and yen and putting them on the table for the victims of climate change.
Hope despite the hurdles
Bringing loss and damage funding into the COP27 debate is controversial.
The issue was not added to the COP27 pre-consultations held in Bonn, Germany in June. Talks there on UN technical assistance in calculating losses and damages also ended without agreement due to disputes over how the scheme should be administered.
COP27 will not be easy. This is because rising energy costs, the economic fallout from the war in Ukraine, and the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic have tightened the purse strings of wealthy nations, prompting richer nations to spend more. Trillions of dollars support their economy.
"We hope that developing countries will mobilize their collective voices to advance the proper management of loss and damage," said Jamaica's Ministry of Economic Growth on Climate Change. Minister Matthew Samuda said.
Historically, rich economies, including the United States and her 27 EU countries, have resisted measures that could impose liability or lead to reparation. .
Negotiators at last year's COP26 UN summit agreed to begin a two-year dialogue on loss and damage, but failed to establish an actual fund.
Putting this topic on the COP27 agenda will help define where the money will come from, how it will be distributed, and how climate-induced losses will be defined. A discussion may open as to whether Some studies suggest that such losses could reach $580 billion annually by 2030.
"Everything remains very uncertain about how to rebuild trust between developed and developing countries," says Alex, a climate diplomacy expert at think tank E3G. Scott said.
Still, some resource-scarce nations want a breakthrough.
"We expect the international community to step up soon," said Madeleine Diouf Searle, chair of the Least Developed Countries Block in the United Nations climate negotiations, referring to wealthy countries. He pointed out that there is a growing awareness of the need among
For example, during a visit to the Pacific island nation of Palau last month, Germany's foreign minister said Germany would prioritize the issue in its international climate policy.
"This is an issue that hasn't been discussed enough for a long time," said Annalena Beerbock. "And it's really about fundraising." (Reporting by Kate Abnett, Additional reporting by Mark John, Editing by Katy Daigle and Josie Kao)
