DILI, 17 november 2022 (TATOLI) – After participating in the 2022 Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP27), Timor-Leste called on the developed countries to double their provision of adaptation climate finance to offset their contribution to the environmental crisis.
“Developed countries have committed to providing billions in climate finance to compensate for their contribution to the environmental crisis. So far, they had not done enough and need to put their empty promises into practice,” said Secretary of State for Environment, Demetrio do Amaral de Carvalho at the press conference held in Dili.
As the head of the Timor-Leste delegation at COP27, Carvalho argued that countries that emit more toxic gases into the atmosphere should also have a greater contribution to climate finance, which seeks to mitigate the effects of climate change.
“Developed and industrialized countries must contribute billions of dollars to help developing countries cope with the effects of climate change. Therefore, we need more budget for climate resilience,” he said.
He recalled 13 years ago, developed countries, at a UN climate summit in Copenhagen, made a significant promise to provide US$100 billion a year to least developed countries by 2020 to help them adapt to climate change and mitigate further rises in temperature, saying the promise has been broken: “So they need to double their contribution to climate finance in the coming years.”
In 2009, rich countries pledged to jointly mobilize US$100 billion a year in climate finance by 2020 to support developing countries in reducing emissions and adapting to climate change.
Carvalho pointed out that climate change could cost Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) 1 to 5 percent of their GDP per year.
“Therefore, Timor-Leste also urged those rich countries to provide more funds to help poor nations recover from losses and damages caused by climate change. For example, we lost US$500 million due to the damage caused by the April 2021 Flash Flood,” he said.
A recent report estimates that developing and emerging countries will need US$2 trillion a year by 2030 to cope with climate disruption.
“In addition to climate finance, we also want the industrialized countries to be serious with their promises to reduce gas emissions. In fact, the 20% of the richest countries in the world produce 80% of the planet’s fossil fuel emissions, while the poorest 80% contribute only 20%,” Carvalho emphasized.
At the opening of the meeting, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, argued that the United States and China, as the two largest economic powers in the world, have the responsibility to join efforts to make the Glasgow Climate Pact a reality.
Guterres believes that the two giant nations can set a good example so that other countries also put the measures into practice.
The Timor-Leste delegation team to COP27 was made up of 32 people, including the Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães, the Timor-Leste Climate Change Ambassador, Adão Soares Barbosa, Secretary of State for Environment, Demetrio do Amaral de Carvalho and others.
The 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) took place this year in the city of Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, between 6 and 18 november. This annual meeting has brought together heads of state and authorities from around the world to find solutions to address the effects of climate change.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Nelia Borges
