What next after the Suva Dialogue?
2 May 2018
While engaging in the Suva Dialogue on a range of approaches to raise support and finance for loss and damage action in developing countries, ECO is sure Parties will already be thinking “What next?”
Yes, the review of the Warsaw International Mechanism is already coming up on the horizon. It will happen in 2019 and, in ECO’s view, the WIM-review should be based on a clear presentation of options to move forward, so that the COP can take decisions at its 25th meeting which results in a rapid scaling-up of finance and support available towards at least US$50 billion by 2022.
Of course, some elements of the way forward have already been agreed. The UNFCCC Secretariat will prepare a report on the meeting, and the Executive Committee of the WIM will use this report in its next session in September. One objective of the ExCom’s discussion will be to define the scope of the technical paper on sources of finance for loss and damage which the Secretariat will prepare in the first half of 2019 feeding into the review. As this should be available in time for the June SB session, ECO likes the idea of already agreeing to hold another Suva Dialogue next summer, to allow for focused discussions on the review.
But ECO also expects the ExCom to provide COP with suggestions on actions to be taken on the basis of the Suva Dialogue report (not everything has to wait for the 2019 review). COP24 negotiations could devote a particular negotiation session on the Suva Dialogue outcomes, which can inform a COP decision in Katowice.
Given there are a number of issues that need to be worked out in order to result in an effective next phase of the WIM, the ExCom should also consider setting up a specific task force, potentially jointly with the Standing Committee on Finance. This could allow for more focused work to elaborate proposals on the way forward on loss and damage finance €” with broad stakeholder input €” in 2019. The Suva Dialogue can only be the first step towards a strong 2019 review.