CAN Intervention: Joint SBI-SBSTA Closing Plenary, SB56

My name is Ahmed El Droubi and I am speaking on behalf of Climate Action Network.

As we leave here and prepare for COP27, the African COP, the COP that should address the needs of vulnerable peoples and communities on our continent and across the world, the COP that should enshrine Climate Justice – we ask you what happened here? What have you as governments done to protect the millions of people suffering across the world? How could you fail so monumentally to deliver on your mandates to do this? Your failure as governments is a failure for humanity. 

Because of inaction and a lack of urgency to reduce emissions by polluting countries and sectors, we are now living in an era of loss and damage. We bear witness to this almost on a daily basis. Whether it is the destruction caused by extreme weather events or the devastation caused by slow onset events like the drought in the Horn of Africa where 20 million are on the brink of starvation. 

Leaving this Bonn session with empty hands, with nothing positive to tell the people of the world, except that once again, their needs have not been top of mind in this process, is unacceptable. 

So when you leave here and head back to your capitals, you need to secure concrete mandates for COP27 to: 

1. Get agreement to establish a Loss and Damage Facility 
2. Deliver an effective Santiago Network through establishing the Advisory Board as a first step
3. Get agreement to finalise the Global Goal on Adaptation
4. Deliver your pledge to double Adaptation Finance, and in fact, you need to do far more than double this 
5. Bring your commitments and plans to enhance your NDC’s 
6. Bring your plans for a Just Energy Transition for a faster equitable and fair phase out of fossil fuels to keep 1.5C alive 

And importantly rich nations need to fulfill their grossly insufficient and long overdue $100bn commitment AND ensure that they deliver the finance and support to poorer nations to address the climate crisis. 

No more empty words. Just Action. Just Implementation. 

People’s Power

Climate Justice