African NGO: Western Obstruction at COP28 Endangers Global South

NGO Working Across Africa Calls For Support for Key COP28 Agreements

LOS ANGELES , CA, UNITED STATES, December 12, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Health4Peace has praised the UN COP28 climate summit in Dubai for securing a range of unprecedented international agreements, despite widespread dissension among its 198 country delegates.

But it warns that Western hypocrisy – demanding a fossil fuel phase out while refusing to offer the finance to make it possible for most of the world – has become the greatest hidden spoiler to a global phase out deal. While Saudi Arabia is leading the charge of OPEC nations opposed to reducing fossil fuels, the failure of the US, UK and EU to back their demands with the appropriate action – support for developing nations to transition beyond oil, gas and coal – has compounded the deadlock.

The statement is being issued by US nonprofit Health4Peace to recognise progress on key climate milestones despite scepticism from a range of senior public figures from former US Vice President Al Gore to COP26 president Alok Sharma, who have both said that the COP28 summit will be a failure if it does not agree to a phase out of fossil fuels.

According to Nathalie Beasnael, chief operation executive at the NGO, COP28 has managed to achieve a number of critical agreements not achieved by any previous COP summit. There is still time to build on these and incorporate them into a global climate deal at COP28, if Western countries follow up their rhetoric with action:

“Irrespective of whether a fossil fuel phase out agreement is achieved, no previous COP summit has secured the set of agreements on energy, environment, health and food that has already been secured by this one. That’s testament to the convening authority of the COP28 presidency, which despite chronic disagreements on key global issues has managed to forge some transformative climate goals.”

Beasnael was a speaker on a panel at COP28, appearing alongside health ministers from across the Global South.

“It’s no secret that Western and European governments demanding a phaseout of fossil fuels are finding themselves at loggerheads with countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, India, China and Russia who refuse to endorse such language”, said Beasnael:

“The UAE COP Presidency, with its consistent support for a ‘phase down’ of fossil fuels, is adopting a position which is unpopular among its own allies and closer to the European position. But it’s the position which has the only chance, even if slim, of being pushed through.

Unfortunately, Western demands for a fossil fuel phase out seem like empty rhetoric when they are leading the biggest expansions in fossil fuel investments, while refusing to facilitate the trillions of finance necessary to accelerate the energy transition.”

Health4Peace acknowledges in particular that the UAE presidency has demonstrated extraordinary climate leadership by putting its money where its mouth is – unlike many Western governments such as the US, EU countries and the UK, which despite ample rhetoric on phasing out fossil fuels, have failed to provide the funding to do so.

• The COP28 presidency facilitated a historic agreement to operationalise and capitalise a Loss and Damage funding mechanism, with $792 million pledged to date.
• The UAE also launched a $30 billion catalytic fund, ALTÉRRA, to mobilise $250 billion globally for climate action.
• The UAE committed $200 million to help vulnerable countries through Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), $150 million to fund water scarcity solutions, and $220 million to drive better health outcomes for African youth.
• The UAE is also committed to deploying $300 billion of renewables projects worldwide by 2030 according to a policy analysis published by the Caribbean-ASEAN Council with Uskudar University’s Forum For Environmental Ethics, for which Nathalie Beasnael was a co-author.
Despite legitimate concern about the lack of a global fossil fuel phase out agreement, the COP28 presidency has made unprecedented progress in securing support from 130 countries – that’s two thirds of world governments at the UN summit – for the Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Pledge.
“This landmark commitment to triple renewable energy and double energy efficiency by 2030 will play a big role in phasing down fossil fuels by reducing demand”, said Beasnael.

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