Climate finance will go in vain unless global warming kept in check

A new UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report has warned that if current policies continue, global temperatures could rise by a catastrophic 3.1°C by the end of this century.

The report further emphasised that to steer away from the current trajectory of rising temperature, nations must leverage COP-29 as a critical platform to ramp up ambition, ensuring that new Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) collectively commit to nearly halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

Acknowledging this, the civil societies of Bangladesh are going to put more emphasise on reducing it to 1.5° in upcoming COP-29, which is going to be held in Baku, Azerbaijan this year. A key demand for Bangladesh at the upcoming COP-29 will be to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C, aligning with the Paris Agreement's target.

During a seminar titled "COP-29 and Bangladesh Position: Civil Society Perspective," held today at the CIRDAP, organised by EquityBD, researchers and representatives from the government and NGOs shared their insights in this regard.

At the seminar, participants discussed their demands and positions for the upcoming COP-29, with an additional goal of enhancing emission reductions by phasing out the use of fossil fuels.

According to the World Energy Report, fossil fuels accounted for 81.5 percent of global energy use in 2023, reflecting only a 0.5 percent decrease compared to 2022.

Citing this data, Abul Hasan, the keynote speaker from COAST Foundation, said, "This is not a significant improvement in reducing fossil fuel usage. Therefore, we will focus on this issue this time and expect a roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels."

Participants also emphasised that they will no longer support a "Net-Zero" approach; instead, they will focus on achieving a "Zero Emission Target by 2050." They agreed that the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of polluting countries must be more ambitious.

The recent UN report also said nations must collectively commit to reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions by 42 percent by 2030 and 57 percent by 2035 in the next round of NDCs. It emphasised the need for swift action, warning that the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C could be unattainable within a few years if these commitments are not met.

Referring to the report, participants at the seminar today said current commitments are not being met and they will demand to ensure transparency and accountability from the global north on delivery of climate finance this year.

They will also demand for a new need based and 100 percent grant based climate finance, climate financing through G2G process and no IFI investment.

Alamgir Kabir, general secretary of BAPA (Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon) said, "We have to focus on how to come back with our demands being fulfilled. We need to focus on result. It is also important to know how we are utilising the money that we are getting."

MD Ahsanul Wahed, deputy programme manager of Manusher Jonno Foundation, stated, "We need compensation from the global north. Civil society plays a crucial role in advocating for climate justice and must raise their voices. After 2026, we will transition to a developing country and will no longer be classified as an LDC. What will our plan be then?"

Dharitri Kumar Sarkar from the Ministry of Environment and Forests mentioned that the discussions and recommendations will be incorporated into the position paper prepared by the Bangladesh government for the upcoming climate conference. He noted that the main challenge at the conference is that all 128 member nations must reach a consensus to make any decisions, which makes swift resolutions difficult.