The necessity of providing technology, regulations to promote climate action
Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, UN Climate Change High Level Champion for Egypt and the UN Special Envoy on Financing 2030 Sustainable Development agenda, stressed the need to strengthen partnerships between the public and private sectors in the files of mitigation, adaptation, losses and damages to enhance investing in renewable energy and reducing emissions. Such partnerships, he added, will have a positive impact on the economies of countries.
He explained that despite the increased awareness of climate action based on science and evidence , the world is witnessing sad developments facing many countries, whether developed or developing ones, referring to the humanitarian catastrophe that occurred in Pakistan as a result of the consequences of climate change.
This came during his virtual participation in a session organized by the Edelman Advisory . The session was moderated by Mr. Henry Paulson, former US Secretary of the Treasury, discussing many files , including climate finance and the transition to clean energy in light of the energy crisis that the world is currently facing, as well as developments in the field of climate action since Paris Agreement.
For his part, the climate champion indicated that work with the Egyptian presidency of the climate summit begins next November with the launch of COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh up to COP28 in Emirates.
Mohieldin also warned against deviating from the desired goals, referring to the report of IPCC which stated that Instead of working to reduce carbon emissions by 45 percent, we added about 15 percent to them, deviating from achieving the desired goals by about 60 percent. The developing countries are bearing the consequences and the greater cost of addressing them.
With regard to the mitigation file, Mohieldin explained that there is progress in this domain, stressing the need for more efforts to be on the right track.
On the other hand, the climate champion added that the adaptation file needs to be tackled more seriously, especially since about 97 percent of adaptation financing depends on public financial entities, either through state budgets or borrowing from abroad.Meanwhile, the contribution of the private sector does not exceed only 3%.
As for climate finance, Mohieldin stressed the need to move from promises and pledges to implementation By activating innovative financial methods with the support of major financial institutions, as well as public and private sector partnerships. This is a sign of seriousness, he noted
The climate champion also noted that this funding must be accompanied by the provision of the necessary technology, in addition to bringing about a change in behavior in all files related to climate action, including the governing regulations as there are some regulations that impede the activation of the Paris Agreement, especially in the file of losses and damages.
In another context, Mohieldin highlighted the progress in the green hydrogen file, where a number of countries are racing in this file, including many developing economies.
He also praised Egypt’s pioneering experience in the solar energy file, stressing the importance of providing the necessary technology to ensure a just environmental transformation.
