Following late-night talks prior to the start of the summit, the agreement to include formal discussion of the loss and damage finance facility was reported by Bloomberg. This was welcome news from those who have long demanded that wealthy nations that are most responsible for creating the climate crisis have a responsibility to fund damage repair and mitigation efforts required by poor nations that are most affected by extreme weather, increased temperatures, and exploitation by the fossil fuel industry.
In response to the news, Greenpeace delegation head Yeb Sao, a former Philippines climate minister, stated, “This is game on for agreeing the loss and damage finance facility so urgently needed to support climate justice for developing countries.”
“It is a significant moment that loss and damage finance has been agreed as an agenda item for the first time since the most vulnerable countries raised the clarion call decades ago,” Sao went on to say of the decision.Nevertheless, he stated, “The struggle is far from over.”The blatant attempt by wealthy nations to omit this topic from the COP27 agenda hints at some of the strategies for delaying and diverting attention.
Some have dubbed the 12-day summit the “African COP” because it is the first “convention of the parties” held in an African nation. Prior to the gathering, the demands of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable nations — many of which are located on the continent, but not all of them — were at the forefront.
In a Sunday statement from Sharm El-Shiekh, regional director of 350Africa.org Landry Ninteretse stated, “If there’s one message that needs to be heard through this ‘African COP, it is that the people of Africa reject any further attempts at the exploitation of our home and resources.”
Ninteretse continued, “We do not require any additional extractive projects.”We reject feeding the North’s addiction to fossil fuels and remind world leaders of their obligation to address the three main aspects of the climate crisis:mitigation, adaptation, loss, and damageThese fundamental issues have been the subject of negotiations for the past 27 years:stop making fossil fuels, put a lot of money into renewable energy solutions, and say you’ll give money to helping vulnerable countries deal with the effects of the climate crisis.We anticipate viable solutions to Africa’s food and energy crises prior to the start of COP27.This time, in Africa, we anticipate the administration of justice.
