COP28 Kicks Off with Loss and Damage Fund Success!
COP28 commenced today in Dubai with significant progress. The loss and damage fund was approved and launched to assist poorer nations with climate-related disasters. COP28 President Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber highlighted the positive momentum, and the early breakthrough could pave the way for further compromises during the two-week summit. This is great news for small island developing states, including Belize. News Five’s Hipolito Novelo is in Dubai and has the latest.
Hipolito Novelo, Reporting
The two-week-long global climate summit is expected to host over one hundred and sixty world leaders. Government ministers and other technical experts from about two hundred countries will engage in negotiations. About seventy thousand delegates are expected to participate. And according to Belize’s chief negotiator Ambassador Carlos Fuller, negotiations will be intense.
Carlos Fuller
Ambassador Carlos Fuller, Chief Negotiator for Belize
“Absolutely intense. In fact, it is going to be so intense that even when the leaders are speaking we will be negotiating. So it is not like as if we will be waiting for them to continue. Some will be speaking in one part of the COP and we will be doing to work on the ground on another part.”
Belize is part of the Caribbean Community, CARICOM, the Association of Small Island Developing States, AOSIS and the Group of 7+ China. And like many other small island developing states, Belize is focused on key issues such as loss and damage. Specifically, operationalizing the fund.
Ambassador Carlos Fuller
“So infact, part of the decisions coming out is to put aside some of the funding towards small islands developing states and least developed countries because we recognized those are the ones most impacted. The idea is that large countries would not absorb all the money but a certain amount of that fund will be put aside for us. It seems very good at this stage. The transition committee that was established to develop the fund finalized its work and we believe that the bodies, the COP will adopt that without touching any word within the recommendations coming out of the transitional committee. If that is the case then we will begin right away working on it. It is done then to capitalize it. And I understand a few countries have already said that they will put in money into the fund right away.”
The Loss and Damage fund was approved and launched today. Both the United Arab Emirates and Germany pledged one hundred million US dollars. The European Union promised two hundred and seventy-five million dollars. The United States promised seventeen point five million, and Japan promised ten million dollars.
The establishment of the fund has long been a pressing demand from developing nations at the forefront of climate change.
Colin Young
Dr. Colin Young, Executive Director, CCCCC
“We know that Climate Change is a risk multiplier. The Caribbean is one of the most vulnerable regions in the world. People are being impacted significantly by the events of climate change. In terms of loss and damage, in Belize for example, we lose seven percent equivalent to GDP every year without a hurricane from climate-related disasters. In Dominica, we would have loss two hundred and twenty-six percent of GDP from Hurricane Maria. In the Bahamas, about fifty percent of their debt is directly linked to hurricanes in the last ten years. So we suffered the consequences of loss and damages resulting from hurricanes. And so the fight for the Caribbean for thirty years to have this fund to provide money that will assist the countries in terms of recovery after loss and damage is what is at stake here.”
The framework involves reparations that rich nations, accountable for industrial activities leading to global warming and the resulting climate crisis, are mandated to pay for what they continue to cause. The Caribbean is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. This region emits less than one percent of the global greenhouse gas emissions but countries like Belize, continue to be significantly affected. The far-reaching consequences of climate change extend to impacting lives, livelihoods, biodiversity, cultural customs, and identities. The executive director of the 5C’s, Dr Colin Young says specific details will need to be ironed out to determine how exactly the fund will operate.
Dr. Colin Young
“That is what will have to be decided and what will have to be trigger. Some countries are proposing that we have a trigger of about five percent of GDP once a disaster causes losses and damages equivalent to five percent of GDP or more it triggers a payout. Obviously, we would have to look at how we cap it. If you have a major disaster with what happened in Pakistan where you are looking at forty billion dollars in damages, such a disaster can easily exhaust the monies in the Fund. So those are the kind of rules that will need to be set up. One thing that is very clear and that you would hear from the prime ministers of the region and the heads of government of the region advocate for is that whatever it is, it needs to be simple and it needs to be efficient without sacrificing transparency. We cannot wait for two years or three years to get monies from this fund after a disaster. We need it within weeks or months.”
An independent board will be created to manage the fund. Research shows that 55 vulnerable countries have suffered $ 525 billion combined climate crisis-fuelled losses in the last 20 years and that figure is growing. It should be noted that loss and damage fund is different from humanitarian assistance.
Ambassador Carlos Fuller
“So for example, a country is affected by a hurricane, of course you will get the Red Cross, and countries pledge to come in and support you, put your communities back on track. It is rebuilding part that will then go under loss and damage. I’ll give you an example, after Hurricane Hattie you got funds to people who got affect and you put in people into homes but the long-term thing was Belmopan. To me that is how loss and damage will be, how do you go to the next stage so that when it comes again you are better prepared for the next one.”
Dr. Colin Young
“Having an empty bucket with no money in its is half of the success. We want as a region want to see substantial amount of money put into this fund at this COP. That is left to be seen as to whether the develop countries will put a substantial amount of money. Obviously the loss and damages from climate related disasters are in the hundred and billions across all developing countries. So we are not going to get a billion dollars into the fund at this COP but can we potentially get hundreds and millions? I think that is quite possible.”
Hipolito Novelo
Hipolito Novelo
“COP28 aims to instigate transformative actions, foster resilience, and secure financial backing to facilitate a just transition to renewable energy. And we’ll see if by the end of these two weeks, we’ll be closer to a more renewable future.”
Hipolito Novelo for News 5 in Dubai.
In Friday’s newscast, we’ll take a look at the global stocktake.
