Govt asked to take stand against big emitters at Cop-28

Civil society organisations (CSOs) on Saturday called upon the government to take a realistic stand against big emitters to achieve 1.5-degree temperature goal at the next 'Conference of the Parties (CoP-28)'.

They also advised government to demand for a stand-alone 'Loss and Damage (L&D) Fund' to manage the losses due to climate change impact.

The demands were placed at a seminar hosted by the COAST foundation at CIRDAP Auditorium in the capital in association with other organisations.
Dr Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmed, Chairman of Dhaka School of Economics, chaired the seminar while Saber Hossain Chowdhury,MP, Special Envoy to the Prime Minister for Climate Change, was the chief guest and Shameem Haider Patwary, MP, was special guest and Rezaul Karim Chowdhury of EquityBD moderated  the discussions.

Among others Department of Environment (DoE) Directors Ziaul Haque and Mirza Shawkat Ali, Water Keepers-BD's Sharif Jamil, Md Shamsuddoha of CPRD, Fazle Rabbi Sadeki Ahmed of PKSF, Ziaul Hoque Mukta of CSRL, Ahsanul Wahed of MJF, Rabeya Begum of CANSA-BD, Afsari Begum of Concern Worldwide, spoke among others.

Aminul Hoque of EquityBD in his key note paper explained the significance and role of CoP-28 in the first global stock taking during the Paris Agreement and highlighted the in failures in achieving the goals.

He criticised developed countries for their role in risking the '1.5-degree temperature and finance goals, condemning the USA and its allies for not coming to a consensus on the Loss and Damage Fund.
Hoque requested government to negotiate to achieve the goals.

The recommendations made include: big emitters should revise NDCs for a 'Zero Emission' target by 2050, prioritizing 1.5-degree over 'Net Zero', advocating strongly for a stand-alone L&D fund in CoP 28 and designing a non-debt instrument for the new climate finance architecture, prioritizing grants, highly concessional finance, and CBDR&RC for MVCs in the fight against climate change.

Saber Hossen Chowdhury pointed out the  weakness of the current UNFCCC process, for which it cannot reach vital decisions if opposed by a single country.

He called for reforming the process for rectifying  the prevailing conditions to stop them from  deepening crisis.

He emphasised the need for a targeted approach based on updated scientific understanding.

Shamim Haider painted a stark picture of global climate negotiations, describing it as a sinking ship with limited prospects for positive outcome. The challenge, as he sees it, lies in the ineffective presentation of issues at CoP, necessitating thorough preparation in the form of a vulnerability assessment and a climate finance model that can garner expected acceptance from the global community.
DoE Director Ziaul Hoque advocated for a country-driven climate action over legally binding options and reduction of GHG emissions.