COP28 chief: World cannot “switch off” current energy system

The president of the next climate conference of the UNthe COP28 which will be held in Dubai, called on governments this Sunday to leave behind “fantasies” like the hasty abandonment of energy infrastructure existing to meet climate objectives.

“We cannot disconnect today’s energy system before building the new system of tomorrow. It is simply neither practical nor possible.”said Sultan al Jaber during the inauguration of the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week, a conference organized by the UN in Riyadh, the Saudi capital.

“We have to separate fact from fiction, reality from fantasy, the impact from ideology, and we have to make sure we avoid the pitfalls of division and distraction,” he added.

The international community is facing the thorny question of how and when to phase out fossil fuels, an issue that becomes relevant at a time when global temperatures are approaching 1.5ºC above the level recorded in the era. preindustrial.

At the Paris Climate Conference in 2015, countries committed not to exceed this threshold.

Environmental activists criticized the appointment of Sultan al Jaber as president of COP28, which begins on November 30 in Dubai, due to his profile, since he is director of the Emirati national hydrocarbon company, ADNOC.

But Jaber has won significant support, including from US Climate Emissary John Kerry, in part because he claims to be convinced that “The progressive reduction of fossil fuels is inevitable.”

Senior officials in the energy sector, in the Emirates and in other countries, especially Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest producer, argue in favor of continuing to invest in fossil energies to guarantee energy security, but contemplate an eventual transition to abandon their use. .

Financing the fight against climate warming is another of the great challenges of the negotiations. Developing countries, which have less responsibility for climate change, want to get money from the rich countries that have polluted the most in order to adapt to the consequences.

In 2009, rich countries pledged to deliver $100 billion each year to developing countries, but fell short of this goal in 2020 as planned.

“Old promises must be kept, including the US$100 billion promised more than a decade ago,” Jaber said.

a crossroads

At COP27 in 2022 in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, it was agreed to create a fund “loss and damage” for the poorest countries.

“We have to make the loss and damage fund promised in Sharm el Sheikh a reality in Dubai,” Jaber highlighted.

The conference in Saudi Arabia seeks “highlight the challenges and solutions in a region that is one of the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change”, the organizers of the meeting stated in a statement this Sunday.

These countries live confronted with high temperatures and lack of water and more than 60% of the population “has limited or no access to drinking water”, The organizers highlighted that “the rise in temperatures can cause a more persistent and more acute drought.”

Jaber mentioned extreme events such as Storm Daniel, which caused deadly flooding in Libya in September.

“Climate change is not a threat that awaits us around the corner, the region knows this from experience with heat waves and lack of water”said Inger Andersen, executive director of the UN Environment Programme.

For Simon Stiell, UN executive secretary for climate change, the region is “at a crossroads, confronted not only with the devastating effects of climate change, but also with the challenges of transitioning their economies to ensure prosperity in a world aligned with 1.5°C.”

Source: AFP