Early pledges to ‘loss and damage’ fund build shaky trust at COP28
DUBAI/BARCELONA (Thomson Reuters Foundation)听–听The launch of a long-awaited global听蹿耻苍诲听to deal with growing loss听补苍诲听damage from wilder weather听补苍诲听rising seas, at Thursday’s opening of the听颁翱笔28听climate summit in Dubai, gave the annual talks a “running start”, U.N. climate chief Simon Stiell said.
But the initial euphoria greeting its birth – met with smiles听补苍诲听a standing ovation by negotiators – got a tempered response from vulnerable nations on the frontlines of global warming听补苍诲听activists who said the work is far from over.
“We cannot rest until this听蹿耻苍诲听is adequately financed听补苍诲听starts to actually alleviate the burden of vulnerable communities,” said 39 countries making up the Alliance of Small Isl补苍诲听Nations (AOSIS) in a statement after the approval.
Those countries, which include Mr. Stiell’s native Grenada, are bearing a heavier burden as encroaching oceans eat away low-lying l补苍诲听补苍诲听fiercer storms wipe out large chunks of their economies.
Some of those living in isl补苍诲听nations face having to relocate to higher ground or leaving their homelands entirely, with Australia recently agreeing to allow up to 280 Tuvaluans to migrate there annually under a special visa program in response to climate change.
“Success starts when the international community can properly support the victims of this climate crisis with efficient, direct access to the finance they urgently need,” the AOSIS statement added.
While more听辫濒别诲驳别蝉听are expected to be made to the new听蹿耻苍诲听during the two-week听颁翱笔28, the opening session garnered enough money to officially put it into operation, with a $100-million contribution from the UAE matched with the same from Germany.
Britain gave just over $50 million, while the United States offered $17.5 million听补苍诲听Japan $10 million.
The European Union听补苍诲听its member states later confirmed a further $145 million, bringing the total to more than $420 million so far.
罢搁鲍厂罢听RESTORED?
Ani Dasgupta, president of the World Resources Institute, a US think-tank, said the donations represent “a dramatic turn of events compared to just two years ago when it wasn鈥檛 certain if developed countries could ever be convinced to back a loss听补苍诲听damage听蹿耻苍诲“.
“While inadequate to the scale of what is needed, these听别补谤濒测听contributions will play a critical role in restoring听迟谤耻蝉迟听between developed听补苍诲听developing countries as the U.N. climate talks get underway,” he added.
The issue of loss听补苍诲听damage has been hotly debated at successive U.N. climate conferences. For many years, wealthy nations rejected demands to pay compensation for the impacts of their high historical share of planet-heating emissions – a stance reiterated by US climate envoy John Kerry on Thursday.
But last year at COP27, after three decades of pushing, developing countries听补苍诲听small isl补苍诲听nations won agreement on the new听蹿耻苍诲听that will pay to repair devastated property, relocate threatened communities or preserve cultural heritage before it vanishes.
The details of where the money will come from听补苍诲听go to,听补苍诲听how the听蹿耻苍诲听will be managed, were left to be worked out by the current听颁翱笔28听conference in Dubai.
After much wrangling over where the听蹿耻苍诲听will be housed, a compromise was reached in听别补谤濒测听November. Developed countries pushed poorer nations into accepting the World Bank as its host for an initial period of up to four years, although the听蹿耻苍诲听will have an independent board.
Julie-Anne Richards, strategy lead at the Loss听补苍诲听Damage Collaboration, a network of policy experts, researchers听补苍诲听campaigners, said rich nations had “railroaded developing countries to get the World Bank shoe-horned in there” by arguing it would get money flowing more quickly.
Now those wealthy governments have a responsibility to play their part by filling the听蹿耻苍诲听with adequate resources, she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The United States in particular was criticized by climate justice advocates for the small size of its contribution compared to it historically large emissions.
“The initial听蹿耻苍诲ing听辫濒别诲驳别蝉听are cl别补谤濒测听inadequate听补苍诲听will be a drop in the ocean compared to the scale of the need they are to address,” said Mohamed Adow, director of Power Shift Africa, a Nairobi-based think-tank, in a statement.
“In particular, the amount announced by the US is embarrassing for President Biden听补苍诲听John Kerry.”
NEW OR RECYCLED CASH?
After the听蹿耻苍诲听was launched in Dubai, developing countries from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Iran听补苍诲听Vanuatu echoed the call for more contributions to the听蹿耻苍诲听补苍诲听demands for easy access to its coffers for vulnerable countries听补苍诲听communities.
Many aid specialists also warned rich nations against taking their contributions to the new听蹿耻苍诲听from budgets that would otherwise be used to pay for emergency relief in disasters or development programs like health or education.
Ian Mitchell, a senior policy fellow at the Center for Global Development, described Thursday’s loss听补苍诲听damage听辫濒别诲驳别蝉听as “tokenistic”.
“If they’re not additional (to aid), then they may actually be damaging for climate resilience听补苍诲听development,” he told Context.
Other proposals are under discussion for non-government sources of finance that could exp补苍诲听resources for the loss听补苍诲听damage听蹿耻苍诲, including global taxes on fossil fuels, aviation, shipping听补苍诲听financial trading.
“If there was a new source of revenue for the loss听补苍诲听damage听蹿耻苍诲听then that would be a major breakthrough for climate听补苍诲听development in a way that these incremental amounts are not,” Mr. Mitchell said. – Reuters
