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Africa Moyo in SHARM EL SHEIKH, Egypt
The 27th Conference of the Parties (COP 27) opened here yesterday, with delegates agreeing to adopt as an agenda item, the proposal by the Africa Group of negotiators for developed countries meet the costs incurred by developing countries when repairing infrastructure damaged by floods and other extreme climate conditions.
In their meetings ahead of COP27, African negotiators said the continent could not continue to repair roads, buildings, and other infrastructure, damaged by floods, and importing food after a season of poor harvests due to erratic rains.
Therefore, Africa Group of negotiators have been pressing to make ensure loss and damage funding was made an agenda item at COP 27.
As COP 27 started yesterday, climate change protesters gathered at the main entrance holding banners demanding that world leaders take decisive action against the impact of climate change.
Some of the placards they carried were inscribed, “Be veg, Go green 2 save the planet”.
A journalist from Bulgaria, who has covered 24 editions of the COP, said global leaders were not determined to solve the climate crisis.
While protests continued outside, proceedings went ahead, with top officials meeting for the opening plenary.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, officially received the COP presidency from former president Alok Sharma.
In his remarks, Mr Shoukry said “if adaptation is not met, if the issue of finance is not fulfilled, then we will continue to lag behind”.
“There is no room except to move forward to obtain our objectives,” said Mr Shoukry.
He also confirmed that the loss and damage funding, to meet costs of infrastructure repairs in developing countries affected by vagaries of climate change,
had been officially included on the COP agenda.
Southern Africa, including Zimbabwe, has perennially been hit by flooding, leaving a trail of destruction and increasing the funding burden on affected nations.
Floods have not only damaged infrastructure, but also led to poor harvests.
The affected countries have had to fork out money to import food, and mend broken infrastructure using their limited resources.
A finance facility for compensating loss and damage, has therefore been viewed as critical and warranting to be on the COP 27 agenda.
The Africa Group of negotiators indicated that they sought to approach the finance issue for loss and damage with clear demands in a step-by-step format, such as requesting for establishment of a fund dedicated to loss and damage at COP 27.
A member of the United Nations Framework Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC) Secretariat, Engineer Mohammed Nabawy Abdel Rahman from Egypt, who toured Zimbabwe’s Pavillion yesterday, said he was excited by the attendance of other African countries.
“I am so surprised today, first of all by the presence of our African brothers and sisters who have come to us to fight for the protection of our resources and our rights,” he said.
Eng Rahman said he was impressed by the design and the welcoming nature of staffers manning the Zimbabwe Pavillion.
“Your stand has been arranged in a good way and all people here are smiling.
“I hope you are going to achieve your targets for COP, and you get some funding for your (climate) projects,” said Eng Rahman.
Discussions continue today at COP 27, with over 140 world leaders meeting.
The Heads of State and Government will continue with their discussions tomorrow as the world seeks to find a viable way forward in the fight against climate change.
Young people, including those from Zimbabwe, are at COP 27 to push for resolutions that will help them navigate the challenges brought about by climate change.
Delegates yesterday said young people were “the Plan A and only plan in this most difficult moment”.
Ambassador Wael Aboulmagd, the Special Representative of COP27 President, said young peoples’ voices were needed to fight against “backsliding, delay or deprioritisation of climate action”.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres yesterday tweeted that the last eight years “are on track to be the warmest on record”.
“Sea levels are rising at twice the speed of the 1990s. We must answer the planet’s distress signal with ambitious, credible climate action (and) COP27 must be the place – and now must be the time,” said Mr Guterres.
Ahead of COP 27’s opening yesterday, Egypt lit up the Khafre Pyramid in green as its own special way of ramping up the battle against climate change.
The pyramid is one of the three ancient pyramids of Giza that date back 4 500 years.
Online Reporter