COP27: Time to ‘Implement’

www.ozy.com [OZY]( OZY A Modern Media Company Share This Sh*t November 10, 2022 Share This Sh*t [The drop]( COP27: TIME TO ‘IMPLEMENT’ COP27 is taking place in Africa. That’s important — but not for the reason you think. On the Rise Tatira Zwinoira from Harare, Zimbabwe [@tati_tatira]( “Paris gave us the agreement. Katowice and Glasgow gave us the plan. Sharm el-Sheikh shifts us to implementation,” said Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the United Nations Climate Convention on Sunday in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, at the opening ceremony of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP27. Development is going to happen. Our emissions profile as a continent will definitely increase. - Saliem Fakir It is significant that COP27 — which features a series of meetings between heads of state, climate experts, NGOs and business leaders to address the rising climate threat — is taking place in Africa. News reports have focused on the inequitable effects of climate change, in which developing nations that contributed little to the problem of greenhouse gas emissions are seeing some of the worst effects. What has scarcely made headlines, however, is the fact that developed nations, in particular in Europe, are increasingly looking to Africa to meet their demand for fossil fuels — while many African leaders aspire to dramatically uplift their nation’s living standards, which almost certainly requires a dramatic increase in carbon emissions. Saliem Fakir, the executive director of the African Climate Foundation, told OZY that Africa’s contribution to this week’s conversations about climate change had nothing to do with the continent’s historically low emissions, but rather on a future in which those emissions will rise. “Development is going to happen,” said Fakir. “Our emissions profile as a continent will definitely increase.” This reality comes as existing agreements on emissions reductions also face challenges. While Stiell announced in no uncertain terms that now is the time for implementation, only [29 countries]( have come forward with tougher national climate plans since last year’s COP26. As leaders across Africa seek economic growth to benefit the very people who have so often been excluded, they anticipate a collision with the phase-in of emissions caps. Meanwhile, the most [recent weather study]( from the U.N.'s World Meteorological Organization showed that the past eight years have been the warmest on record. Wealthy Nations’ Pledges Come Up Short As leaders across Africa seek economic growth to benefit the very people who have so often been excluded, they anticipate a collision with the phase-in of emissions caps. Fakir of the African Climate Foundation envisions rising incomes and population growth which, he said, would make African countries “subject to a much higher level of carbon restrictions … and our goods could be penalized.” Why not take advantage of the new climate technologies when they are already proving to be quite competitive? - Saliem Fakir He emphasized that this calls for forward-thinking strategies. “We have to make investments into issues of climate risk,” he told OZY. “Why not take advantage of the new climate technologies when they are already proving to be quite competitive?” This ambitious perspective is hindered by dollars and cents — and shillings, francs and kwacha. Africa’s [growing debt, inflation and demand for more social spending]( limits the continent’s ability to raise money internally to deal with climate change, leaving national governments dependent on financing from other parts of the world. And despite promises, such financing is slow in coming. A [report]( by the American market intelligence and research firm, Fitch Solutions, noted that pledges from developed nations to assist emerging nations in de-carbonization “have so far fallen short of their headline targets.” Projects to tap and transport fossil fuel reserves across Africa are being greenlighted. Meanwhile, projects to tap and transport fossil fuel reserves across Africa are being greenlighted. As [previously reported](, an agreement for the construction of a Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline was signed in September by 16 countries in West Africa and Morocco in order to supply Europe with the commodity. There is also Equatorial Guinea’s [“Gas Mega Hub”]( that seeks to use the existing gas infrastructure on Bioko Island, off the northernmost tip of Equatorial Guinea and the west coast of Africa, to commercialize large yet previously stranded natural gas reserves. Africa is vulnerable to extreme heat, altered precipitation patterns, aridity and rising sea levels, which collectively harm the continent's water resources, agricultural output, coastlines and other ecosystems. Mindful of the potential monetary gain from these and other projects, energy ministers from across Africa [drafted resolutions]( to take to the G7 and G20 states, to tell wealthy nations not to interfere as the continent aims to explore its resources for the betterment of its own people. In 2020, a [report]( by the Rwanda-based policy think tank, CDP Africa, found that only 3.8% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions have come from Africa, compared to 23% from China, 19% from the U.S., and 13% from the European Union. At the same time, Africa is vulnerable to extreme heat, altered precipitation patterns, aridity and rising sea levels, which collectively harm the continent's water resources, agricultural output, coastlines and other ecosystems. COMING 11/15: OZY'S LATEST DOCUSERIES Get a SNEAK peek [HERE](! ‘Too Little, Too Slow’ The estimated annual adaptation costs for developing nations, when accounting for inflation, are in the range of $160 to $340 billion by 2030 and $315 to $565 billion by 2050, according to the [United Nations Environment Programme](, in a report titled “Too Little, Too Slow.” Around the world, voices are clamoring for wealthy nations to foot this bill. “For fairness’s sake, action should be coming from the developed nations, considering Africa’s minimal contribution to global warming, and the amount of climate crisis suffering it earns,” said Lynet Otieno of GreenFaith, a U.S.-based international organization that seeks to empower people of diverse religious traditions around the world to address climate change, with an emphasis on preventing the suffering of those who are most vulnerable. [GreenFaith]( and other advocates have their work cut out for them. COMMUNITY CORNER Are there radical strategies to address climate change that you think the international community should consider? [SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS]( [TV]( | [PODCASTS]( | [NEWS]( | [FESTIVALS]( OZY is a diverse, global and forward-looking media and entertainment company focused on “the New and the Next.” OZY creates space for fresh perspectives, and offers new takes on everything from news and culture to technology, business, learning and entertainment. #OZYMedia, #TheDrop OZY Media, 800 West El Camino Mountain View, California 94040 This email was sent to {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Read Online](