Nepal’s role in COP and Issues of Climate Finance
COP 23 and Nepal’s Agenda?
This year becomes very challenging, because of natural disaster around a world. More than 1200 people lost their life because of flood in Nepal, Bangladesh and India. United States of America faced a devastating hurricane and incidence of fire. Many of the part of world faced the recorded hit of heat waves and storms. All this cost to loss of billions of property. Some day before, World Metrological Organization release a report with a warning sign of global average concentration of Carbon dioxide reached 403.3 parts of millions (ppm) in 2016. This reports also says that this concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increase at record speed last year to hit a level not seen for more than three millions years. With this all on the board, worlds leaders, academician, representatives from civil society, climate activists, media and youth are gathering at Bonn for UN Climate Change Conference.
What is COP 23?
This year, 23rd Meeting of Conference of Parties to UNFCCC will take place from 6 to 17 November at Bonn, Germany. The conference will be convened under the Presidency of Fiji. This meeting will focus on the development of guidance on how the Paris Agreement’s provisions will be implemented across a wide range of issues including transparency, adaptation, emission reductions, and provision of finance, capacity building and technology. There will also be the thirteenth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 13), second part of the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1.2). There will also be the forty seventh session of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA 47), forty seventh session of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI 47) and fourth part of the first session of the AD Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA 1.4). The COP, the CMP and the CMA are the supreme decision making bodies for the Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement respectively. This is a regular meeting of UNFCCC but will also be very important as this will be on of the very important steps for the effective implementation of Paris Agreement.
Being a party to the UNFCCC, Nepal has also participated in the COP meeting from the beginning. Nepal has participated with a strong voice raising the important agenda of Nepal. This year also, governmental delegation led by the Honorable Minister for Ministry of Population and Environment, Government of Nepal, representatives from Civil Society, Climate Activist, representatives from media house have already headed to Bonn to participate in meeting.
What are the main agenda of Nepal for COP 23?
Before moving to Bonn, Ministry of Population and Environment has prepared a Nepal’s Agenda paper with a series of consultation workshop in Nepal. Nepal has focused and call for the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement, financial support to undertake the adaptation and mitigation actions in the country. Nepal has also raised the issues related to financing of adaption, financing of loss and damage and consideration of agriculture within the formal negotiations process. Nepal has focused in the harnessing of international cooperation and support in technology development for the implementation of NAPA priority projects. Nepal has also focused for the international effort for the access of small holder farmers to adjust their farmers systems and move toward low carbon efficient practices and to increase the access of farmers to weather and climate information services and financial schemes. Nepal has priorities adaptation finance and technology transfer as a key to Nepal and LDCs. Nepal has also put forwarded to discuss on the modalities for accounting financial resources and clear clarity on the financial instruments, difference between the ODA and the climate finance. Nepal will also raise the issues for the easy and simplified access of international funds, capacity building of Least Developed Countries like Nepal. Nepal will raise all this issues during the different meetings, side events.
Being one of the most vulnerable countries because of the negative impact of climate change and Least Developed Countries, Conference of Parties to UNFCCC is very much important for Nepal, to raise the Nepal’s Agenda on the global arena. So, Nepal delegation team has not to miss any chance to grab the opportunity which is foremost to achieve the Nepal’s goal.
Written By Pradeep
Pradeep is a climate activist from Nepal and currently he is working with Prakriti Resources Centre (PRC) as a Programme Officer. He is also a part of Online Youth Exchange Program run by Care About Climate and China Youth Climate Action Network.