Following negotiations at the Dubai Climate Summit (COP28), nearly 200 countries have agreed to transition to eliminating fossil fuels.

The participating countries approved the Global Balance, an agreement that aims to strengthen collective climate action to limit temperature rise to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Ecuador’s forestry organization receives international honors at the COP 28 convention

This agreement was approved by consensus during the plenary meeting. Urges states to transition away from fossil fuels in an orderly and equitable manner by accelerating action this decade and aims for net-zero emissions by 2050, according to science.

The European Union, together with other industrialized economies and countries vulnerable to climate change, prioritized at this summit the search for a way to move away from this type of energy. Although uncertainty remained until the plenary session, concerns about the acceptance of this agreement by oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia, which were identified as the main opposition, were overcome.

Sultan Al Yaber, Chairman of COP28, during the plenary meeting highlighted the historic and unprecedented achievement; He also thanked the delegations for their hard work over the past two weeks.

Meanwhile, the European Commissioner for Climate Action, Wopke Hoekstra, stated that the world has just made a decision at COP28 to launch an irreversible transition away from fossil fuels.

‘We want a fund that is inclusive, that does not leave Ecuador out of the picture,’ says Secretary of State for Climate Change about the UN Environmental Repair Fund

However, Teresa Ribera, Spain’s Minister of Ecological Transition, assured that not everything has been done yet, but that it is an important step. For his part, John Kerry, climate representative of the United States, revealed that he was “impressed” by the cooperation between the countries that make up the summit.

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres regretted the financial commitments as very limited, despite the record $12.8 million reached for climate-sensitive communities.

In this context, Guterres has urged reforming multilateral development banks to increase direct financing support at reasonable costs for climate action in developing countries.

The world cannot afford delay, indecision or half-measures. “I am confident that, despite many differences (…), the world can unite and rise to the challenge of the climate crisis,” concluded the UN Secretary General. (JO)