The African leaders at COP28 agreed that climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing the world today and requires sustained efforts to achieve the highest aspirations of the African Climate Summit in Nairobi and COP28. Angola, as the current president of the Organization of African, Caribbean, and Pacific States (OEACP), pledged to advocate for the organization’s interests and concerns about climate change at COP28.
This commitment was expressed by the Angolan President Joao Lourenco, who highlighted the serious impacts of climate change on OEACP countries. He said that the most urgent of these impacts was the alarming rise in sea levels, which threatened to wipe out some Pacific and Caribbean islands.
At the summit in Dubai, President Lourenco stressed the need for dedicated financial resources for climate action and the creation of a new financial mechanism for climate-related programs. He welcomed the approval of the Loss and Damage Fund at COP28, which was very important for the countries most vulnerable to climate change.
The President also emphasized the importance of fulfilling the financial pledges and providing easy access to funding for the least industrialized and developed countries. He said that these countries, especially the small island states, were the most affected by environmental phenomena. He expressed hope that the growing global awareness of climate issues would lead to more solidarity at COP28 and a more determined approach to achieving the set goals within the agreed timelines.
