The COP28 is opening today with a resounding call to accelerate collective climate action….reports Asian Lite News
UAE is determined to unite the world around climate action and ensure no one is left behind, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan said hours before the official opening of the 28th edition of UN Climate Change Conference, COP28, in Expo City Dubai.
“We are honoured to welcome the international community to the UAE for the start of COP28,” Sheikh Mohamed said in a social media post.
“Solving the challenges facing our planet requires a shared vision and collective action, and we are determined to unite the world around climate action and ensure no one is left behind”, he added.
The COP28 is opening today with a resounding call to accelerate collective climate action. The conference takes place in what is already known to be the hottest year ever recorded in human history and as the impacts of the climate crisis wreak unprecedented havoc on human life and livelihoods around the world.
COP28 in Dubai, from 30 November to 12 December 2023, is a decisive moment to act on climate commitments and prevent the worst impacts of climate change. UAE has the presidency for COP28, with Dr Sultan Al Jaber as this year’s president.
This year’s COP marks the conclusion of the “global stocktake”, the first assessment of global progress in implementing the 2015 Paris Agreement. The findings are stark: the world is not on track to limiting temperature rise to 1.5°C by the end of this century. It does recognize that countries are developing plans for a net-zero future, and the shift to clean energy is gathering speed, but it makes clear that the transition is nowhere near fast enough yet to limit warming within the current ambitions.
“We are determined to unite the world around climate action and ensure no one is left behind.”– H.H. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, UAE President
A report recently published by UN Climate Change News shows that national climate action plans (known as nationally determined contributions, or ‘NDCs’) would collectively lower greenhouse gas emissions to 2% below 2019 levels by 2030, while the science is clear that a 43% reduction is needed.
The global stocktake must be a catalyst for greater ambition in meeting the Paris Agreement’s goals as nations prepare to submit revised national climate action plans by 2025. It lays out actions on how to accelerate emissions cuts, strengthen resilience to climate impacts, and provide the support and finance needed for the transformation.
“Over 160 world leaders are headed to Dubai, because only cooperation between nations can get humanity back in this race. But COP28 cannot be just a photo-op. Leaders must deliver – the message is clear,” said UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell. “And as leaders leave Dubai after the opening summit, their message to their negotiators must be equally clear: don’t come home without a deal that will make a real difference.”
Climate finance stands at the heart of this transformation. Replenishing the Green Climate Fund, doubling financial resources for adaptation and operationalizing the loss and damage fund are key to keeping 1.5°C within reach while leaving no one behind.
“The reality is that without much more finance flowing to developing countries, a renewables revolution will remain a mirage in the desert. COP28 must turn it into a reality,” Stiell added.
Progress on climate finance at COP28 will be crucial to build trust in other negotiation areas and to lay the groundwork for an even more ambitious “New Collective Quantified Goal” for climate finance, which must be in place next year. It will also set the stage for a just and inclusive transition to renewable energy and the phasing out of fossil fuels.
In the face of rising conflicts and tensions worldwide, Stiell emphasised the need for collaborative efforts to combat climate change, an area in which nations can work together effectively to ensure a sustainable future both for people and the planet.
“We don’t have any time to waste. We need to take urgent action now to reduce emissions. At COP28, every country and every company will be held to account, guided by the north star of keeping 1.5°C within reach,” said COP28 President Dr. Sultan Al Jaber.
“All parties should be prepared to deliver a high ambition decision in response to the global stocktake that reduces emissions while protecting people, lives and livelihoods,” Al Jaber added.
