The UN Climate Change Conference COP27, held in Egypt’s resort town of Sharm al-Sheikh, reached an unprecedented breakthrough agreement to provide “loss and damage” funding for vulnerable countries hit hard by climate disasters.
Despite the step forward in loss and damage funding, summit parties were unable to agree on other files. Issues of contention will be discussed in the UAE, which will host the COP28 summit next year. These files include the mechanisms by which the loss and damage fund will be implemented, and steps needed for lowering emissions.
According to the COP27 closing statement, governments agreed to establish a “transitional committee” to make recommendations on how to operationalize both the new funding arrangements and the fund at COP28 next year.
The first meeting of the transitional committee is expected to take place before the end of March 2023.
E3G, a climate change think tank, welcomed the breakthrough with great caution. Despite saying that agreeing to the loss and damage fund was a historic step forward, it warned that it ushers in the beginning of an unresolved battle.
“Climate impacts were the central thread at COP27, with a huge change in politics from last year, and remarkable diplomatic efforts in the last weeks. A historic step forward was taken by governments tonight: for the first time, a Loss and Damage fund and financial arrangements were established,” said a statement by E3G.
“The fight is not over: details on who will contribute to the fund or on the accessibility to the financial arrangements will have to be negotiated in the upcoming years. But we can finally say Loss and Damage won fair recognition at COP27 – and that deserves to be celebrated,” the statement added.
As for cutting emissions, an African negotiator at COP27 revealed to Asharq Al-Awsat that “the efforts to reduce emissions have been met with strong opposition from China and some developing countries, which believe that they have the right to benefit from their oil wealth to achieve development.”
