COP27 – International mechanism for compensating poor Countries

In News

• For the first time in the history of United Nations climate negotiations, loss and damage finance will be part of the official agenda of the conference of the parties (COP27) at Sharm-El-Sheikh in Egypt. 
  • Countries participating in the negotiations agreed to a 20-point provisional agenda.  

International mechanism for compensating poor countries (Loss and Damage) 

• The decision to include loss and damage in the main agenda comes in the wake of a series of unprecedented climate disasters this year:
  • Europe’s worst drought in 500 years.
  • Pakistan’s worst ever flooding.
  • Extensive heat waves in several parts of the world.
• There had been strident demands from a growing number of countries to discuss loss and damage more seriously and with greater urgency than earlier. 
• The climate conference in 2013 set up the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) on Loss and Damages as a separate track to continue the discussions on this front.
  • The discussions under WIM so far have focused mainly on enhancing knowledge and strengthening dialogue.
  • No funding mechanism, or even a promise to provide funds, has come about.
• What is “Loss and Damage”?
  • It refers to costs already being incurred from climate-fuelled weather extremes or impacts, like rising sea levels.
• Issues:
  • The demand for loss and damage finance is quite old, but it has faced strong resistance from the rich and developed countries.
  • Inclusion in the formal agenda is just the first step. The actual provision for compensation for climate disasters is a long way ahead.
• Significance of this move
  • The inclusion of loss and damage finance in the agenda for COP27 has renewed the fight for justice for communities losing their homes, crops, and income. 
  • Rich countries, historically responsible for the climate crisis, have bullied poorer nations to protect polluters from paying up for climate damage, while disregarding the concerns of vulnerable people and countries. 
  • COP27 must agree to establish a Loss and Damage Finance Facility to help people recover from the impacts of climate crises, such as intensifying floods, droughts and rising seas. 
  • It must be ensured that it is taken forward with complete transparency, keeping in mind the needs of the poorer and most vulnerable countries.

 Major players at the UN climate conference

• China
  • The world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitter had its hottest summer on record this year.
  • In a national climate adaptation plan, it said extreme weather was an increasing threat.
  • Still, the country is increasing its coal use in the face of energy security risks.
• USA
  • The world’s second biggest emitter after China.
  • Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) are expected to triple the amount of clean energy on the electricity grid and reduce carbon emissions by 1 billion tons annually by the end of this decade.
  • It is also ready to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which will phase down the use of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs – a climate pollutant used in refrigeration.
• EU
  • Greenhouse gas emissions from the 27-country European Union comprise about 8% of the global total, and have been trending downward for years.
  • The bloc has enshrined in law targets to cut net emissions by at least 55% by 2030 from 1990 levels, and reduce them to zero by 2050.
• UK
  • In 2019, Britain pledged to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, and last year committed to a 78% reduction by 2035 compared with 1990 levels.
• BASIC countries
  • Brazil, South Africa, India and China make up this bloc of populous, fast-developing countries with highly polluting economies.
  • Each has asked rich countries for more climate financing, and demanded equity through the UNFCCC concept of common but differentiated responsibilities.
    • It means wealthy countries that have contributed the most emissions to the atmosphere historically have a greater responsibility to address the problem.  

Way Forward

• Climate change is a global problem and it requires cooperation between all nations.
• It needs rules that are fair and just, for the poor and the rich alike.
• Science is clear that humans are responsible for the global temperature rise and that this increase will lead to more and more variable and extreme weather events, much like what we are seeing now.
• Countries that have not yet contributed to the emissions will do so in the future, simply because the world has reneged on the need to make global rules that would apply fairly to all.

Source: IE