The President-Designate of the 28th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Dr Sultan Al Jaber, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, at the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, presented his broad ambitions for COP28.
In a presentation, he stated: “We have just passed the seven-year mark since the adoption of the Paris Agreement with just seven years to go to 2030. Seven years to reduce emissions by 43 per cent and keep the ambitions of Paris Agreement alive.”
Dr Al Jaber added that “the most recent IPCC report has already made it crystal clear that we are way off track. This is a moment of clarity that we must face with total honesty. We must unite and seize the moment of the Global Stocktake to put the world on the right track to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.”
On renewables, Dr Al Jaber called on the world to £triple capacity by 2030 and double it again by 2040.”
He added: “In my meetings with climate, finance and development ministers across the Global South, what I hear time and again is that climate finance is nowhere near available,, accessible, or affordable enough. IFIs and MDBs are not keeping pace with the challenges of the 21st century.
“Developing countries are still waiting for the $100 billion promised by developed countries 14 years ago. This is holding up progress, and as part of my outreach, I am requesting donor countries to provide a definitive extraordinary report on the delivery of this commitment by COP28. It is vital to the political credibility of the UNFCCC process that donors step up to this long overdue obligation ahead of COP28 especially as the real value of this commitment has eroded over time.”
Dr Al Jaber warned that “if the world does not come up with effective mechanisms to deliver climate finance to developing and emerging economies, they will have no choice but to choose a carbon-intensive development path. This is an outcome we want to avoid simply because it is in nobody’s interests.”
“In a pragmatic, just and well-managed energy transition, we must be laser-focused on phasing out fossil fuel emissions. We know that the energies used today will continue to be part of the global energy mix for the foreseeable future. As such, we will work with the world to decarbonide the current energy system while we build a new one capable of transitioning even the heaviest emitting industries.”
He highlighted that “COP28 must also provide tangible solutions to help people adapt to climate change and manage growing climate impacts. This is why we will be the first COP to dedicate a day to health and the first to host a health and climate ministerial.
“We need to broaden our definition of adaptation to enable global climate resilience transform food, systems, and enhance forestry, land use and water management.”
Dr Al Jaber concluded by saying: “Let’s put an end to delays and start delivery. Let’s turn passion into pragmatic solutions. Lat’s end polarisation. There are moments in history when humanity comes together to fight a common threat. Let’s unite in solidarity for the sake of humanity. Let’s live up to the responsibility that we have been entrusted with. Let us restore political credibility to the legal agreements that we have not yet fulfilled.
“Let’s work together to deliver an ambitious agenda and a practical action-oriented plan for 2030. Let’s unite a divided world for the planet, for our people and for lasting sustainable development. The world demands transformational progress. The world needs transformational action.”
