Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, the President-Designate of the 27th session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27), participated on Saturday in a session on environmental diplomacy and climate change.
This came as part of his current participation in the Munich Security Conference.
During the session, Shoukry praised the positive results of the recent COP 26 that was held in Glasgow, according to a statement released by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ahmed Hafez.
He also said that these results came to enhance international efforts to confront climate change and that was also reflected in the great momentum shown during the conference and through the political will expressed by various world leaders.
Shoukry affirmed that Egypt realises that there is still much work left in the field of confronting climate change, which it will seek to do by hosting the COP 27 to encourage all countries to enhance their nationally determined contributions to reduce emissions that cause climate change in a manner consistent with the target temperature.
He added that this should be implemented in accordance with the Paris Climate Accords and in line with the latest scientific research in this regard — represented in the reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) — as well as providing the necessary financing to adapt to climate change.
In this regard, Shoukry referred to the dialogue table chaired by President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi during the European-African Summit in Brussels, which clearly revealed the concerns of African countries regarding the amount of support directed to them to promote climate action in Africa.
The FM also mentioned that one of the most prominent lessons learned from the coronavirus pandemic is the importance of international cooperation to confront the pandemic, which represents a global crisis affecting all countries.
He explained that climate change also represents a global crisis with unprecedented repercussions, which highlights the importance of multilateral environmental diplomacy. To confront climate change, he stressed the need for political grievances not to be reflected in climate change negotiations.
In this context, the FM affirmed his keenness to communicate with all parties concerned with climate change in a way that enhances confidence among them and takes into account their various concerns.
He explained that the shift towards dependence on renewable energy sources should increase the level of cooperation between countries in a way that achieves their common interests.
Shoukry noted, in this regard, that addressing climate change is not the sole responsibility of governments, but also includes civil society organisation as the bearer of the voice of the parties most affected by the repercussions of climate change, along with the private sector, given its important role in providing the necessary financing and modern technology to confront climate change.
Furthermore, he affirmed Egypt’s keenness to enable youths and civil society organisations to play an effective role in international efforts to change climate, which is why the country is organising its first youth forum on climate change in preparation for hosting the COP 27.
