. Says world off-track keeping temperatures below 1.5°C target
The COP28 UAE Presidency has stressed the need to move from incremental to transformational inclusive progress through partnership, political will and unified climate action.
Speaking at the World Government Summit on Wednesday in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, COP28 President-designate, Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, affirmed that the UAE’s approach as host of COP28 would be to apply a positive mind-set and the principle of partnership to ensure tangible results at COP28 holding in Dubai later this year.
He said such partnerships have fuelled UAE’s development and economic approaches over the last 50 years, according to a statement from the UAE Climate Change Special Envoy.
Against this backdrop, the President-designate however decried that the world is way off track when it comes to the goal of keeping global temperatures from rising 1.5 degrees and needed a new approach to move from goals to getting it done across mitigation, adaptation, climate finance and loss and damage.
He said: “The hard reality is that global emissions must fall 43 per cent by 2030. That’s just seven years away. We need a major course correction.
“The current approaches we have been using come from a different era. Some are no longer fit for purpose. And we need to accelerate action at a time of continued economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and pressure on energy security.
“We have to transform entire industrial systems that still run on the energies of the first Industrial Revolution. In short, we need to shift from incremental steps to transformational progress across mitigation, adaptation, finance and loss and damage.”
The current approaches we have been using come from a different era. Some are no longer fit for purpose. And we need to accelerate action at a time of continued economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and pressure on energy security.
Access to capital
Al Jaber emphasized that affordable, accessible capital was key to ensure inclusive climate progress, adding that clean investments are already driving sustainable growth and stressed the need for the reform of international finance institutions and multilateral development banks.
One of the most critical enablers to bridge from goals to getting it done is capital; lots of capital. And we must make sure that this capital is accessible and affordable. We need to ramp up investment across every area of decarbonisation and we should view these investments as an opportunity, not a burden.
“In fact, economists estimate that decarbonizing the industry, the energy sector, power generation, transportation, and food systems could create an additional $12 trillion in economic value by 2030.
“Capital is also key to adaptation, where we need to double annual funds to protect the most vulnerable communities, invest in nature-based solutions, preserve our rainforests and protect biodiversity. And capital is critical to make the loss and damage fund real and operational and it is the key to a fair deal on climate finance for the Global South.
“The international community must follow through on pledges made over a decade ago. We need real reform of international financial institutions and multilateral banks to unleash more concessional dollars, lower risk and attract more private finance for vulnerable communities.”
Policies and strategies
Given the tasks ahead, Dr. Al Jaber emphasized that policies and strategies should encourage inclusive progress particularly across the Global South.
He said: “The strategies we pursue must leave no one behind. The policies we adopt must be pro-growth and pro- climate at the same time. We must enable an energy transition that includes the 800 million people who are excluded from access to energy today. And we must urgently address the needs of the 2.6 billion people who have no access to clean water.
“We must eliminate energy and water poverty, while keeping 1.5 alive. And we must cater for a world that will be home to an additional two billion people by 2050. In short, we need to hold back emissions, not progress.”
He reiterated that the COP28 Presidency would listen to and engage with all stakeholders, noting that only through open, constructive, and positive engagement will we achieve the breakthroughs we collectively need.
He ended with a call to action to the world’s governments to combine political will with concrete actions for game-changing results.
