Mobilise Loss and Damage Fund, disburse immediately, Saber asks global leaders

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury today urged the global leaders to mobilise the Loss and Damage Fund and disburse it immediately among the climate vulnerable countries.

“The success of Loss and Damage Fund, formed during the COP28, depends on fund mobilisation and how rapidly the fund can be disbursed to the communities hit hard mostly by climate change,” he told the World Government Summit titled ‘Delivering the UAE Consensus Globally: From Agreement to Action’ held in Dubai, the UAE.

On November 30 in 2023, Dubai opened the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change with a landmark move: operationalising the Loss and Damage Fund. The fund aims to help the vulnerable nations cope with the adverse impacts of climate change.

Speaking at the summit, Saber Hossain said the pledges on climate finance taken during the COP28 need to be significantly built upon during this year to respond to the increasingly acute needs of the most vulnerable countries, according to a message received here today.

“It is an urgent to agree on a definition of climate finance and we must also ensure that the New Collective Quantifiable Goal is designed to deliver scaled-up the financing aligned with needs and scientific assessment – for mitigation, adaptation and loss and damage,” he said.

The Bangladesh environment minister said it must be ensured that there is an appropriate follow-up and accountability in the implementation of GST outcomes.

“Any potential loopholes must be closed and our focus must be on actions that are strictly 1.5 degree Celsius aligned. For the first time in around three decades of the COP process, the UAE Consensus, under the leadership of the UAE, yielded concrete commitments from nations around the world on transitioning away from fossil fuels,” he said.

Likewise, Saber said, the success on Global Stock-take outcome, with strong recognition of achieving 1.5 degree Celsius and significant gaps on climate finance, will rely on countries’ commitments to the outcome and prompt action to address the ambition and implementation gaps to 1.5 degree Celsius.

He said other crucial areas like the mitigation work programme and the work programme on just transition pathways need to be stepped up in 2024 to contribute to implementation of the GST outcomes and deliver activities that will contribute to realize the objectives of the Paris Agreement and fostering inclusive climate action implementation.

The minister said the focus now is on delivery of the UAE Consensus and translating its ambitious outcomes into tangible implementation that aligns fully with 1.5 degree Celsius and the needs of the most climate vulnerable members of the global community.

The Global Stocktake decision from COP28 has set a list of follow-up tasks for 2024 which will be crucial to guide timely implementation and for tracking progress on climate action to ensure accountability, Saber added.

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, COP28 President and UAE Special Envoy to Climate Change; Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF);  Muawieh Radaideh, Minister for Environment of Jordan;  Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC; and Mukhtar Babayev, COP29 President Designate and Minister for Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan; also spoke on the occasion. (BSS)