Sharm El-Sheikh – “The time has come to move from negotiations and pledges to a stage where implementation is a priority,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry — the President of the 27th edition of the UN Conference of Parties on Climate Change (COP27) on Sunday.
Shoukry’s remarks came after he was formally elected as the COP27 president by the parties during the opening plenary session.
During his speech, he stressed the need to expedite the implementation of what was agreed upon in the Framework Convention on Climate Change and was reinforced in the Paris Agreement and its work programme, and the need to raise the level of ambition of all countries according to their different capabilities by nature.
He added that the world does not have the luxury of continuing the approach of attracting efforts to combat climate change, noting that Egypt plans to work to support and strengthen confronting climate change.
The new COP27 president pointed out that “we will all lose if each team clings to its gains without considering the threat of climate change,” explaining that Egypt will spare no effort to achieve success in the climate summit.
Additionally, he noted that the countries of Africa are among those that suffer the most from the ramifications of climate change despite their low carbon footprint, stressing that the continent’s countries have demonstrated willingness to confront the phenomenon, but they need support given their meagre capabilities.
He added that the conference represents an opportunity for all concerned parties to confirm that they possess the necessary political will to confront the challenges arising from climate change in the midst of the current international tensions that have cast a shadow over everyone and resulted in crises in food and energy supplies, stressing that the time has come for all concerned parties to transition from the stage of negotiations and pledges to implementation.
He also pointed out the importance of the issue of financing and the just transition to new and renewable energy to foster sustainable development in the continent and lift its citizens out of poverty so that they may contribute positively to international efforts.
Furthermore, Shoukry explained that the current consultations support the possibility of the countries of the continent assuming their responsibilities in cooperation with the business sector, private sector, and civil society in proposing solutions to prepare for technology transfer that would allow African and developing countries to enhance their capabilities in dealing with issues of climate change and adaptation.
The COP27 is taking place against the backdrop of inadequate ambition to curb greenhouse gas emissions. According to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, CO2 emissions need to be cut by 45% by 2030 to meet the central Paris Agreement goal of limiting the increase in global temperatures by 1.5°C by the end of this century.
This is crucial to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, including more frequent and severe droughts, heatwaves, and rainfall.
The Egyptian presidency of the COP27 has set out an ambitious vision for this COP that puts human needs at the heart of global efforts to address climate change.
The presidency also intends to focus the world’s attention on key elements that address some of the most fundamental needs of people everywhere, including water, food, health, and energy security.
“We’re gathering this year at a time when global climate action is at a watershed moment. Multilateralism is being challenged by geopolitics, spiralling prices, and growing financial crises, while several countries battered by the pandemic have barely recovered, and severe and depleting climate change-induced disasters are becoming more frequent,” Shoukry said.
“The COP27 creates a unique opportunity in 2022 for the world to unite, to make multilateralism work by restoring trust and coming together at the highest levels to increase our ambition and action in fighting climate change. The COP27 must be remembered as the ‘implementation COP’ – the one where we restore the grand bargain that is at the centre of the Paris Agreement.”
For his part, Simon Stiell — UN Climate Change Executive Secretary — said: “The COP27 sets out in a new direction for a new era of implementation, where outcomes from the formal and informal process truly begin to come together to drive greater climate progress and accountability for that progress.”
He then called on governments to focus on three critical areas at the COP27. The first is a transformational shift to implementation of the Paris Agreement and moving past negotiations to concrete actions.
The second is cementing progress on the critical workstreams of mitigation, adaptation, finance, and loss and damage, while stepping up finance notably to tackle the impacts of climate change.
The third is enhancing the delivery of the principles of transparency and accountability throughout the UN Climate Change process.
The COP27 kicked off in Egypt’s Sharm El-Sheikh on Sunday and will run until 18 November.
