Combating climate change: We are in it together
THE FIRST part of the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, known as COP15, was successfully held in Kunming, China, in mid-October 2021. The meeting adopted the Kunming Declaration and called upon all parties to take actions to jointly build a community of all life on Earth.
China announced that it would invest 1.5 billion yuan (about US$230 million) to establish the Kunming Biodiversity Fund to support biodiversity protection in developing countries, which also contributes to global efforts against climate change. The 26th session of the Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, known as COP26, will take place in Glasgow, United Kingdom, starting from the end of this month. The international community pays great attention to the COP26 and eagerly looks forward to its success.
The impacts of climate change have been more and more obvious in recent years, imposing serious threats to all countries, especially the small island developing states (SIDS). The international community has fully recognised that climate change is a common challenge for all and a required question in our time. No country could combat climate change on its own or could be immune from the impacts of climate change. The only way out is to synergise the efforts of all countries, including China and SIDS, to combat it.
COMMITTED TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
China is committed to the path of green, low-carbon, and sustainable development and firmly implements the Paris Agreement on climate change. As an active participant and contributor in global response to climate change, China has embedded ecological civilization in its integrated economic and social-development plan. China has been committed to peaking its carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060 and will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad. China’s carbon intensity has been reduced by 48.4% in 2020 from the 2005 level and will be reduced by over 65% in 2030. China will also step up its efforts investing wind and solar power and other renewable energy projects. Realising the aforementioned goals is a necessary step for China to achieve sustainable and high-quality development and reveals China’s willingness to take up its responsibilities as a major global player to make greater contributions to global response to climate change. Achieving these goals will be no walk in the park, and it will take arduous efforts.
Jamaica plays an active and important role in combating climate change. In his remarks to the Leaders Summit on Climate and the General Debate of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, both held this year, Prime Minister Andrew Holness called upon the international community to provide financial and technological supports and more help in capacity building to SIDS. China understands and supports the reasonable demands of Jamaica and other SIDS and is willing to work with Jamaica to urge developed countries to honour their commitment of providing climate finance of US$100 billion to developing countries annually. Meanwhile, combating climate change must adhere to multilateralism; uphold the principles of “common but differentiated responsibilities”, equity, and respective capabilities; and respect the need for development and the special conditions of developing countries. Developed countries bear historical responsibility for climate change. They should take the lead in substantially reducing emissions and live up to their commitments with concrete actions.
SOUTH-SOUTH COOPERATION
Enhanced South-South cooperation is also needed in combating climate change. For a long time and within its capability, China has been providing supports in various forms such as projects, building materials, and technologies assistance and human resource development to other developing countries, especially SIDS, African countries, and the least developed countries (LDCs) to strengthen their capacity in combating climate change. In 2015, China announced the establishment of a 20-billion-yuan (about US$3 billion) South-South Climate Cooperation Fund and the plan to set up 10 pilot low-carbon industrial parks and start 100 climate mitigation and adaptation programmes in other developing countries. China also conducts South-South climate cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative. I believe that there is huge potential and bright prospects for China and Jamaica to jointly combat climate change under the framework of South-South cooperation.
Let us take the upcoming COP26 as a good opportunity to push all parties to transform their climate goals into concrete policies and actions and work together to combat climate change as the Earth is our common home and humankind is a community with a shared future. China stands ready to work together with Jamaica to deliver a successful COP26 so as to inject new momentum into global response to climate change and promote a fair and equitable system of global climate governance for win-win cooperation.