In Bonn on Wednesday 15 November, COP 23 entered its decisive phase, with the opening of the high-level section to round off more than a week of work at expert level. Progress has undoubtedly been made towards detailing the implementation rules of the Paris Climate Agreement, but not enough, for instance on the financing of the adaptation, losses and damage of the most vulnerable countries - in the view of NGOs and the developing countries, particularly the small island states and African countries.
The urgent need to act and to raise the level of ambition to plug the gap between the commitments made and efforts required to comply with the objectives of the Paris Agreement were on all lips from the start of the event. The leaders' stated intention of doing all in their power to ensure that COP 23 is a success echoed the call to action launched by a child from a Fijian village completely destroyed by a cyclone last year: “today, there are no more excuses. Let us be more committed to the environment. Talking and words will not change the problem”, he said.
The chair of COP 23, the Fijian Prime Minister, Frank Bainimarama, stressed that this global discussion should focus on “vulnerable populations, not to make victims of them”, but because all countries of the world are linked together by the common challenge of climate change (our translation throughout). He went on to urge all parties to make sure that the hoped-for results were achieved in the two remaining days.
Plugging the gap. The priorities are clear, said Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the UN: “we need to do more in five areas: reducing emissions, adaptation, funding, partnerships and political leadership”. The most recent UN report on the gap between commitments and efforts “shows that we are not doing a third of what we should be and that for the first time in three years, 2017 saw an increase in CO2 emissions”. He called on the countries to increase their level of ambition from 2020, to contribute more to the green climate fund and to respect the commitment made by the wealthy countries to mobilise US$100 billion a year to support the attenuation and adaptation efforts of the developing countries up to 2020.
Stressing the importance of investments in green technologies, he said that one rule should prevail: “no green light to investments in infrastructure unless those investments are green”.
“We must stick to our Paris commitments. The historic agreement of 2015 and the road we are travelling are irreversible”, said the President of the Federal German Republic, Frank-Walter Steinmeyer, who firmly believes that multilateralism is “vital for a world of peace rather than an unfair world and the law of the jungle”. Reiterating the historic responsibility of the industrialised countries in climate change, he called upon them to provide vulnerable countries with specific help.
Increasing climate funding and bold partnerships for innovation are two priorities, said Miroslav Laiev, president of the United Nations General Assembly.
Innovation opportunities to benefit all. The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, said that it is a duty to “translate the Paris Agreement now. It is a matter of trust and reliability”. She stressed that the EU had an ambitious and binding objective - to reduce its emissions by at least 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels - and had just reached an agreement on reforming its carbon market (ETS), which is an important factor in carbon pricing. The Chancellor, whose country is behind schedule to reach its 2020 objective, acknowledged that it would be difficult as coal is part of the German energy mix, “although renewable energies are its largest pillar”.
“Innovation opportunities must benefit all countries”, she said. This is why Germany has doubled its contributions to the developing countries. Emphasising the importance of mobilising private funds as well, she stressed the key role that investment banks will play. She went on to thank French President Emmanuel Macron for hosting a summit in Paris with the World Bank on 12 December (see below). Germany is also a player, with the World Bank, in the initiative launched at COP 23 on Wednesday for an insurance fund to cover the risks of the countries most affected by climate change.
A summit in Paris on 12 December to stimulate 'climate finance'. “We now need clear and firm commitments (…). The Paris Agreement is a starting point to which we are committed and which will not let go of”, said President Macron. The 'One Planet' summit, which he will host in Paris on 12 December with the World Bank, to mark the second anniversary of the signature of the Agreement, will aim to put together a specific battle plan of victories already won and to come in mobilising public and private funding, with the involvement of cities and the private sector, from America in particular. Macron was applauded when he said that he hoped Europe would be able to provide financial compensation for the shortfall in funding for scientific research on climate change, since the American funding was cut off. “The IPCC is one of the major strands of scientific work under threat from the United States. I hope Europe will stand in for the US for this funding. Up to 2018, it will not miss out on a penny”, he said. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)