Jakarta – The G77+China group is pushing to establish a framework for global adaptation goals. The group’s negotiations at COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, were led by Suriname.
This decision stems from the two-year (2022-2023) Glasgow-Sharm el-Sheikh program for global adaptation goals. The lead coordinator of this negotiating group, Tiffany Van Ravenswaay of the Ministry of Spatial Planning and Environment (ROM), said in a written statement via Climate Tracker, “This program demonstrates the need for a framework that can serve as a global guide to achieve adaptation goals.”
Article 7 of the Paris Agreement defines global adaptation goals. Three important pillars are mentioned, namely increasing adaptive capacity, promoting resilience, and reducing vulnerability to the adverse effects of climate change.
According to her, the framework needs indicators in thematic areas, such as ecosystems, health and well-being, food security and infrastructure. He also pointed out that it is important for the G77+China negotiating group countries to determine which indicators have the highest priority for their respective countries.
Specific indicators will also be time-limited. Furthermore, the framework will be linked to a global inventory to analyse and track progress towards adaptation targets.
She also pointed out a large gap in current global climate change adaptation funding. Even if the currently available funding for adaptation were doubled, this would only close the gap by 5 to 10%. Therefore, it is important to provide financial resources.
“For mitigation, we have a target of 1.5 degrees. However, there is still no clear guidance on what the world wants to achieve regarding adaptation. That is why this framework is so important. It will also ensure that we can track progress on the three pillars of adaptation,” Van Ravenswaay said.
Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping was absent at this year’s climate change summit. An interesting distinction is that China, along with the United States, President Joe Biden was also absent. These two countries are known to be the world’s biggest climate polluters. Van Ravenswaay explained that despite China’s political absence, the country is present in the technical negotiations of the G77+China group to push China’s climate agenda. (Hartatik)
Banner photo: Panelists on stage at the 2030 Methane Emissions Elimination panel during the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference at Expo City Dubai. (Source: COP28/Mahmoud Khaled)
