Developing countries lay out demands ahead of COP26 climate talks

5- point plan supported by representatives of more than half the world’s countries Intervention follows worrying lack of urgency from recent G7 and G20 meetings

Representatives from developing countries have fired the starting gun on negotiations ahead of this year’s COP26 climate summit taking place in Glasgow in November.

The new position paper lays out a five- point plan for concluding a successful COP26 summit and highlights the key issues, which need to be delivered in order to tackle the climate crisis.

It comes in response to a failure to make the needed progress on tackling the climate crisis from last month’s G7 and the G20 finance ministers meeting, which concluded on Sunday.

The COP26 talks will address key issues regarding the Paris Agreement such as the promised financial support from rich, polluting nations to poorer, vulnerable countries, as well emissions reductions and new net zero targets.

Many developing countries are keen to cut their own emissions, despite being responsible for only a tiny amount of the climate heating fossil fuel burning which historically made the developed world rich but created the climate crisis the world faces today.

However, they need funding to help them transition to renewable and adapt to the changes, which are afflicting their people. The five points laid out in the position paper are:

Cutting emissions: Despite welcoming recent progress, the sum total of climate policies in place across the world will not keep global warming within the limits that governments agreed in Paris. An acceleration of net- zero targets are urgently needed, led by those with the biggest responsibility and capacity.

Finance: The promises made by developed countries in Copenhagen in 2009 and again in the Paris Agreement are unequivocal, and must be delivered. At least $ 100bn per year was promised by 2020 with increased annual sums from 2025. However, this target has been missed and needs fixing urgently if developed countries can trust richer nations at COP26 to keep to what they negotiate.

Adaptation: With climate impacts increasing, a specific goal of at least 50 percent of climate finance needs to be committed to help the most vulnerable adapt, with regular reviews.

Loss and Damage: The consequences of the developed world’s historical failure to cut their emissions adequately are already resulting in permanent losses and damage for the most vulnerable. Responsibilities have to be acknowledged and promised measures delivered.

Implementation: After several summits of stalling, governments must by COP26 finalise measures on transparency, carbon trading and set a five- year common timeframe for delivering new national plans ( NDCs).

With the G7 summit in June failing to make concrete progress on climate finance or even agreeing a timetable for the phase out of coal, there remains a huge amount of work to be done before COP26 begins in November.

The need for much greater progress has only been highlighted further by the extreme weather which continues to cause death and destruction around the globe.

Without this five- point plan, developing country leaders warn that the outcome of the Glasgow summit will be worthless and end in failure. The plan has been developed and endorsed by Government leaders representing countries and UN negotiating blocs, which make up more than half the nations of the world.

Ambassador Seyni Nafo, spokesperson for the Africa Group of Nations at COP26 said financing for adaptation, at the same level as that for mitigation, is what’s needed to allow for climate vulnerable countries to adapt to the inevitable climate impacts. “All we African countries are doing is asking richer nations to fulfil their promises. The promises made by developed countries in Copenhagen in 2009 and again in the Paris Agreement are unequivocal and must be delivered.”

Deputy President Kenya, William Ruto said the summit should address the needs of the vulnerable and poor people of the world whose struggle everyday is made ever so difficult by worsening climate change impacts. “Kenya’s farmers and pastoralists continue to count increasing losses from the adverse impacts of global warming. The UN Climate Change Summit in Glasgow, COP26, should deliver on the protection of the planet and its people from the ravages of climate change.”

Minister for the Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Commission of Ethiopia, Prof Fekadu Beyene said lack of keeping promises on these key areas of finance, adaptation, and loss and damage is unacceptable. “What’s the point of agreeing on a new set of promises if we don’t keep them? This document lays out a path to delivering a successful COP26 that responds to the urgency of the climate crisis and restores faith to the negotiations,” he said.