# COP28: Why 'Loss & Damage' Fund Is Not Enough To Fight Climate War In Global South | Geeta's World, Ep 71

An episode of [Geeta's World](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1635741757), 5 Dec 2023, 39 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/57918387/05_dec_23_geetas_world_ep_71_dec_5_mix_128.mp3

Nearly 1,00,000 delegates from 198 countries are participating in the global conference in Dubai for COP28, which commenced on Thursday and will run through December 12. Delegates at COP28 in Dubai established a new fund to aid developing nations in coping with climate-induced damages. So far $660m from 15 developed countries and the host, UAE has been pledged. But is this enough? And as per Oxfam's 2022 report, wealthy nations may fall short by $75 billion in fulfilling the $100 billion annual pledge for climate finance. With the transition to renewable energy requiring trillions by 2030 and escalating losses from global warming, where will this massive funding come from? But to really walk the talk, is always the challenge. Our host Anna Priyadarshini and foreign affairs editor at India Today, TV Today Network Geeta Mohan discuss what challenges await in fighting the climate war and how and what way the COP 28 can contribute. Listen in! Produced by Anna Priyadarshini Sound Mix by Kapil Dev Singh

## Transcript

[0:00] This is in Ya Today podcasts. Delegates at COP twenty eight in Dubai established
[0:08] a new fund to eight developing nations in coping with climate induced damages. So
[0:14] far, six to sixty million dollars from fifteen developed countries and the host ue
[0:20] has been pledged. But is this enough? While everybody's hailing the entire process
[0:26] and the funds that are being created, the fact is that it is not
[0:30] enough. And as per Oxfam's twenty twenty two report, wealthy nations may fall
[0:35] short by seventy five billion dollar in fulfilling the one hundred billion dollar annual pledge
[0:41] for climate finance. So with the transition to renewable energy requiring trillions by twenty
[0:47] thirty, and escalating losses from global warming, where will this massive funding come
[0:52] from. It has to come from countries, It has to come from private
[0:56] sector. It has to come from MDBs, which are multilateral develop in banks,
[1:00] groners and philanthropists. We see a lot of huge, big industrialists and
[1:06] names now pitching in. Hello, I'm Anna Pradeshani with India Today TV's Foreign
[1:11] Affairs editor Gita Mohan. Where with Geta's astute and incisive grasp of world affairs.
[1:19] We delve into all that is urgent and pressing in world politics and comprehend
[1:23] how these developments in other countries could shape India's global ambitions of being a wish
[1:30] for Guru. Let's unravel Geita's World. Hello and welcome. This is the
[1:37] seventy first episode of Kita's World. And today we are discussing something really pertinent,
[1:42] really important because it pertains to Geita and I, you know, especially
[1:47] Geita's favorite topic, which is on climate. She believes in eco friendly environment
[1:53] very dearly, and she was in Dubai for that global confidence which is called
[1:59] the Core eight. You are bad, Guita. How is it? How
[2:02] is the buy? First of all, well, very very interesting because the
[2:07] fact that this was a climate summit surrounded by so many controversies, with the
[2:15] fact that it was being held in the UI that the United are Emirates holds
[2:19] presidency, the president himself heads the national oil company of the country, so
[2:27] conflict of interest. There so many controversies, yet a lot of important conversations
[2:32] and a lot of important outcomes. Not everything as to our liking, Not
[2:38] everything is going as per how most of the climate voices and activists would want
[2:45] it to but a forward movement on many fronts. So we'll talk about that.
[2:50] But for the short period that I was in the Bay, it was
[2:54] Prime Minister Modi who was the star attraction in many ways. Then because india
[3:00] stature from what we used to see in Dubai in yue Do now has changed
[3:07] drastically. This was those rare moments where we saw that the Indian Prime Minister
[3:14] was given space on the podium as a special gesture. When you had the
[3:17] Premier of uk Sonak, the Chancellor of Germany, Chancellor Olaf Shoals and many
[3:24] other top leadership sitting in that pulinary high level meeting in the in the audience,
[3:32] and apart from the cop twentieth President, you had the UNFCCC executive Director
[3:38] and Prime Minister Modi opening the Pullinary. So and again, on one of
[3:44] the occasions, I saw at Mohammad benzad beIN a layan, the ruler of
[3:49] Abu Dhabi and the President of the United Arab Emirates walk Prime Minister Modi down
[3:54] from the Pullinary hall to one of the meetings that was very India specif so
[4:00] he just they just walked down. Then NBC enters the room for two minutes
[4:05] and then leaves, so it was almost like he just dropped him off,
[4:10] but he's walking him up and down seeing him off, taking that special moment
[4:14] with him. Al Jabar also to that moment, you know, to have
[4:17] a brief conversation on the podium. So you see that India has a very
[4:24] important role to play and that was quite evident in how India was treated.
[4:29] Yeah, and the Indian Prime Minister how he was being treated at the cop
[4:34] So the star of the high level meetings was Prime Minister Moti. Actually,
[4:43] I mean besides the optics that you were saying, the kind of repose that
[4:47] also you know, came through that kind of established that, Yes, India
[4:51] is sort of like establishing its footprint when it comes to you know, talks
[4:56] related to climate justice and climate summits. You know, you mentioned a lot
[5:00] of things, just a very small, like a very short brief as in
[5:05] this CORP twenty eight. It commenced on Thursday, it will go it will
[5:10] run through twelfth of December, and this is very important because you know it
[5:15] comes against the backdrop of escalating climate challenges. There's record breaking heat here in
[5:20] Delhi. Deleted winters, delayed summers all is a sign of climate change.
[5:26] There's deadly rain and flooding and devastating storms, the more recent being the cycler
[5:31] in Chennai that has wrecked Havoc and Cheney is of course is a very flood
[5:39] prone area. When I was there in Chennai, i did my journalism there.
[5:43] It's one of those flood prone areas and the remnants are still seen in
[5:47] the pockets that we visited during our journalism assignment. So this Climate summit,
[5:54] amidst you know, several reports highlighting the world's minimal progress in curbing classmate pollution
[6:00] since the Paris Agreement eight years ago, the summer sort of commenced on a
[6:04] positive note, Like Geita, you mentioned because at the very first day,
[6:09] the delegates at COP twenty eight established a new fund to aid developing nations and
[6:14] coping with climate induced damages. But to the real challenge is to really walk
[6:18] the talk like it always mentions, you know, That's that's the challenge.
[6:24] And we'll discuss what challenges a weight in fighting this climate war and how and
[6:28] in what way the COP twenty eight can contribute. So firstly, Geita,
[6:33] like you mentioned the controversies around it. I'll start from that, Like,
[6:38] at least to the lay person, it seems very ironical that the COP twenty
[6:42] eight is being hosted in the Yue, which as a country, the country
[6:46] like is an exemplar of the modern construction of nature, you know, where
[6:50] they have transformed a dessert into a paradise with a lot of green zones and
[6:56] nature reserves, all by pumping oil and fossil fuels and you know, selling
[7:00] it all over the world. Also the fact that you mentioned that the UA
[7:04] has appoint in Sultan al Jabet, the head of the UA's national oil company,
[7:10] as a score president. So the whole thing, you know, looks
[7:13] like the world is trying to greenwash the u A. But to me,
[7:18] even the countries like suppose its stake in the world's transition to cleaner fuels seems
[7:25] sort of counterintuitive. Why because I was thinking, like, why would a
[7:29] country that has built its economy and you know, generated a huge, huge
[7:33] amount of wealth for its people through the sale of oil would want the world
[7:39] to move away from, you know, using fossil fuels. So how do
[7:43] you see this entire debate, Geita, Well, very very important points that
[7:48] you've that you've raised Anna, there is there has been this conversation that how
[7:55] can the UE lead climate conversation when it is primarily a fossil fuel energy based
[8:05] nation that earns out of it. And the fact that Sultan al Jabber,
[8:11] who is the COP twenty eight head, is also the CEO of AD not
[8:15] their national oil company. So there have been those conversations. But the UE
[8:22] alone does not decide on anything the in corp. It's all the countries,
[8:28] participating nations who come together and with consensus or through consensus, work on for
[8:35] WOD movements. So it's not just the UE alone. And there are many
[8:39] other countries who are who are not willing to write now give up on fossil
[8:45] fuel. There are many others who cannot afford to give on fossil fuel.
[8:50] There are those who are dependent on fossil fuel because they don't have the resources
[8:54] for alternative sources such as renewable energy. Now why do I say that,
[8:58] If you look at the loss in amage fund that is to ensure that there
[9:03] is enough funds to create renewable sources of energy for developing countries lease developed nations,
[9:09] there is only that much money that has been pledged yet, so while
[9:15] everybody's hailing the entire process and the funds that are being created, the fact
[9:24] is that it is not enough. We're also looking at the one hundred billion
[9:28] dollar fund that was pledged in during the Shermel Shake Summit last year, where
[9:37] money has not come in. There has been double counting in money that was
[9:41] pledged. They're sending it for some other purposes, but they're counting it as
[9:45] this hundred billion dollar fund. So there has been a lot of double counting,
[9:50] a lot of lack of will, so to say, in actually fighting
[9:54] climate change because of what the world is going through, our countries going through.
[10:01] Yeah, yeah, no, I understand. It's a very important point
[10:03] that you know, there is research that indicates that fifty five vulnerable countries they
[10:09] have suffered five twenty five billion dollars in climate crisis fueled losses over the past
[10:16] twenty years, and in fact, by twenty thirty it will grow higher and
[10:20] the number is estimated to reach five hundred and eighty billion dollars per year by
[10:26] twenty thirty, and loss and damages will increase in future as global warming,
[10:31] you know, continues to rise, and it will continue to be unequally distributed
[10:37] and will impact developing nations the most. Like you said, I mean this
[10:41] is like the funds that is being allocated that is entirely like you said,
[10:46] it's not enough and for the years it will continue to rise. First of
[10:52] all, how will this money come from? And like you said in last
[10:58] day also you know there has been so fulfillment of the promise. What is
[11:01] going to be the way ahead? Then? So when it comes to the
[11:07] one hundred billion dollar goal that was made in twenty twenty two, developed countries
[11:15] are stating that they have likely met the one hundred billion dollar goal, which,
[11:20] like I said a while ago, is not true. There are many
[11:24] where there's double counting. It does not count for what the goal was and
[11:31] the fund was made for initially, and developing countries are questioning the lack of
[11:37] data behind it because they are claiming that it has been done, but there
[11:41] is no data to prove that it has gone into that fund itself. So
[11:48] there is issues regarding quality of the finance, accessibility of the funds, and
[11:54] also the fact that where is the money going to come from? And it's
[11:58] not this this is one hundred million dollar goal, which is separate from the
[12:01] Loss and Damage fund that is coming through the UEI has made a pledge to
[12:07] the Loss and Damaged Fund and is showing intent because they have to prove success
[12:16] of their presidency. We know some other countries including Germany, have pledged a
[12:20] huge amount, so it will be country specific, but look at the United
[12:24] States of America. It's only seventeen million. Only seventeen million, which is
[12:30] petty cash. So there is so the lack of the developed world to really
[12:35] work the talk on climate and provide the funds that are required for the developing
[12:41] countries to develop and come at power with developed countries, not at the cost
[12:48] of environment, not at the cost of losing out on growth, and yet
[12:54] being able to manage is something that nobody is willing to sacrifice for because if
[12:58] they have have to move forward, then they developed countries will have to take
[13:03] a step back. But nobody's willing to take a step back and stop their
[13:07] own growth story and their own growth process. So it is we are living
[13:11] in a very dichotomous world where everybody is pledging. Everybody is showing a lot
[13:16] of in terms of conversation intent, but in terms of putting that intent into
[13:24] action by putting the funds where they're required. By acting on reducing dependency on
[13:31] fossil fuels coal dependency, we know that India also walk back a little on
[13:37] their own cold pledges. Is because right now, post the Russia Ukraine War
[13:41] and the uncertainty and the energy security front, most countries are looking at traditional
[13:48] ways and means of providing security to their own citizens people to ensure that while
[13:58] the transition is happening, that they do not that their people don't suffer and
[14:03] that they do not suffer massive costs because of the because of the reduction in
[14:11] dependency on fossil fuels. So we're walking a very tight tight troupe over here
[14:16] on fossil fuels itself, where it's not just about countries oil producing countries,
[14:22] it's also about all those other countries that are dependent on these oil producing countries,
[14:26] and yes, to a certain extent, uh these oil producing countries.
[14:31] Also if other countries reduce their dependency on oil, then the GCC countries or
[14:39] the countries that are oil producing have not made a very smooth and fast transition
[14:48] into diversifying their own economy in various sectors. So they are so concentrated on
[14:54] an oil economy that they require time for diversification. We know the UE did
[14:58] it UH some time ago, but they still have a long way to go.
[15:03] Saudi Arabia is looking at diversification and has started diversification now, but for
[15:09] them to build those diversified industries sectors will take a while. And if the
[15:15] world stops taking oil or reduces their dependency on oil drastically, then their economies
[15:20] will be hit in a very very major manner. And it's the reason why
[15:24] they're dissuading the reduction at this juncture. There is a there, there will
[15:33] be a point where maybe they will have enough to then say okay, we
[15:37] we can balance our oil income and our other diversified sector incomes and and and
[15:45] remain at a certain level where they want to be in the in their own
[15:48] growth trajectories. But right now that is not the place that they're in.
[15:52] That's not the place even other countries are in. The massive black rock reserves
[16:00] that India has coal reserves uh and dependency on that cannot be reduced according to
[16:06] India uh UH on the on the on the pledges that were that India had
[16:11] taken on on coal and reduction of coal and renewables. Although yes, India
[16:17] is one of the countries that is actually living up with renewables pledges and promises
[16:25] and has walked that path of ensuring that that uh, the focus will go
[16:30] is going to remain on renewables, but for others it's going to be very
[16:33] difficult. Now, the other thing is climate finance that we have been talking
[16:37] about. Climate finance is a very important aspect and like I said, most
[16:42] countries will have to pledge. This is all dependent on country pledges. Uh,
[16:48] nobody can arm twist another nation to say this is what you need to
[16:52] provide. There were conversations about, uh, you know, who did how
[16:56] much, who polluted how much and how many years? Which are the countries
[17:02] that have a massive disadvantage over countries that are developed and had their first mover's
[17:07] advantage. But right now they're looking at how to bring the global community together
[17:15] and work in a manner where they all are willing to pitch in. So
[17:21] climate finance becomes very important over here and not just a hot topic but also
[17:26] a controversial topic because at the end of the day, the funds that have
[17:30] to come in have to come in from the countries that we're talking about you
[17:36] know, the Loss and Damage Fund has so far, like as far as
[17:41] I know till the time I was tracking it has gathered about has been able
[17:47] to collect out six one hundred or over six hundred million dollars, which is
[17:52] far far below what the expected amount is at least two point four brilliant dollars
[18:02] in climate finances needed for developing countries by twenty thirty. Now, that's what
[18:07] one report says. There is an endless cycle of economic crises that many countries
[18:15] are in with the debt crisis that is not prevented, that is preventing them
[18:18] from really moving to renewables and green energy. So who will build that infrastructure
[18:26] for the developing countries? It has to come from the developed nations. Finally,
[18:33] finally, I'm just going to I'm just going to answer your question a
[18:34] little succinctly. So what's required to address this challenge of climate finance that you
[18:41] asked. It has to come from countries, It has to come from private
[18:45] sector. It has to come frommdbs, which are multi lateral development banks,
[18:52] donors and philanthropists. We see a lot of huge, big industrialists and names
[18:57] now pitching in big as they know that they have also cost the climate,
[19:03] the environment a lot. This is the kind of rounded, full scale effort
[19:07] that is required to create a financial architecture that could actually be able to shore
[19:14] up the trillions of dollars that is required for developing countries to be able to
[19:19] transit to a renewable green energy by twenty thirty, which is the goal.
[19:26] I understand that, but like when you were mentioning India, you know,
[19:32] what stood out was the fact that despite achieving you know, emission targets and
[19:36] promoting renovables, India remained firm on coal's crucial role in this economy. I
[19:41] think it's dependent on over like seventy percent of its energy needs. And with
[19:47] this the contentious issue of this coal elimination. This issue was raised because I
[19:53] think it was a debate in twenty cop twenty six as well where a phase
[19:57] down compromise was each And there's a sort of a linguistic challenge between this phrase
[20:06] called phase down and phase cut, because it's clear that India, like many
[20:11] other developing countries, face challenges as it balances these emission reduction with economic development,
[20:17] unlike you know, those countries with the natural gas alternatives, and there
[20:22] was, you know, UN Secretary General guitarists. He told the COP twenty
[20:26] eight delegates that the science is very clear. The one point five degree celsius
[20:33] limit is only possible if we ultimately stop burning all fossil fuels, which includes
[20:40] coal, and he said, you don't have to reduce not a bit,
[20:42] but you have to phase it out with a clear time frame. And on
[20:47] the other hand, India is stressing that, okay, we cannot do that,
[20:48] It's not possible. In this entire debate, such summits, you know,
[20:53] come in the picture. You think that, in the face of such
[20:57] polarized perspectives, does this summit particularly adequately address this glaring disparity in the global
[21:07] approach that they want to build a global community in fighting this climate war or
[21:12] does it fall short of fostering a very meaningful resolution to this entire critical issue.
[21:22] Right now, the conversations are still underway. We're seeing some pledges,
[21:25] some important documents being signed, some not, like the Renewable Energy Pact that
[21:32] was to be signed India China among other countries have not signed it. And
[21:37] it's a telling narrative on where we are headed, like, for example,
[21:44] the Global Renewable and Energy Efficiency Pledge that countries like India China have not signed.
[21:49] Now, some say that the sense that tripling of renewable energy must necessarily
[21:56] go together with phasing out of coal is actually not acceptable to India and China,
[22:03] which are heavily coal dependent economies. Now, what has India done.
[22:11] India has defended its stance on coal, especially as it has come to this
[22:15] as it went to cop where other large imitters like the United States are still
[22:22] holding on to their gas expansion plans. European Union, despite all its talk
[22:26] on climate finance, is still keeping room for gas. Perhaps for India.
[22:30] India doesn't feel like these countries have the moral leverage to ask India offer that
[22:36] matter of China to wind down on cool That's the reason why they have not
[22:40] pledged. It's not like India is not intent on moving to renewables. It's
[22:45] just saying, don't make us pledge on coal. Just because you are not
[22:48] goal dependent and you're gas dependent, then you yourself pledged that you're not going
[22:53] to take gas. So if you're going to and European Union, Europe reels
[22:59] under a massive and how do they heat their entire country? Entire country?
[23:03] I mean, India has places where were we experience extreme winters, but we
[23:10] do not have central heating. Europe will reels under extreme weather conditions'uring winter
[23:17] and it's completely centrally heated the entire nation, almost right, and how do
[23:22] they do that through gas? So basically, right now, India and China
[23:26] and other countries are saying that, don't tell us to cut down on coal
[23:33] when youre usf having plans on how to get electricity and energy through gas.
[23:40] So one hundred and eighteen nations backed this pledge by US and EU barring critical
[23:47] countries such as ours, because we are saying that you guys are still pledging
[23:52] and making a point to move to renewables. We are achieving our renewable goals
[23:59] much before for the set time. We have created our own goals and targets
[24:04] and we're achieving them much before you guys. So don't tell us we're all
[24:08] right, but for now, we'll not be able to let go of our
[24:15] coal intake, like for example, you know here in India, it's saying
[24:19] that it's being said like in Delli only we had we witnessed such a phase
[24:25] that it was impossible for us to breathe. And there were several reasons,
[24:30] and one of the reasons is the transportation, the vehicular pollution, and we
[24:34] are being urged to shift to you know, the ev But then for that
[24:40] also you need all those battery points, all those you need electricity to charge
[24:45] the battery and how does that electricity come from? Right, So it's like
[24:48] a vicious circle. It cannot be the alternative. And why is the owners
[24:53] always lying on the developing countries exactly? Uh? And if you look at
[25:00] the developing countries, they're trying very very hard. And I'm not saying that
[25:04] you know, they've done their bits. There still is a lot that needs
[25:07] to be done. Our own policies domestically sometimes fail uh fail the uh the
[25:15] fight against climate change, but does not mean that there isn't enough that has
[25:21] been done, that has been done or not done. We are looking at
[25:26] targets that have been met by India way faster than other countries. Now,
[25:33] if you're looking at uh, what the uh what the achievements or the big
[25:40] ticket items at COP this time are. So let's just talk about that and
[25:45] then you'll see where where it heads from from here. When the when the
[25:49] COP concludes there are a few things that they're looking at, and five main
[25:55] areas that stand out. One is a fossil fuel phaser deal with clear targets
[26:00] through the twenty thirties. Now this is under discussion, and like you and
[26:04] I have already almost discussed, it doesn't seem like there is going to be
[26:10] clarity on absolute fossil fuel phase out with countries pledging certainly how they're going to
[26:17] go about it, at least not this yere then a new set of clean
[26:22] energy and efficiency targets for twenty thirty, a commitment to deliver new finance targets
[26:26] and excess of one hundred billion dollars a year by twenty thirty, which again
[26:33] is going to be a difficult target. Why because it is one where the
[26:38] earlier hundred billion dollars itself has been in question, whether if it was fulfilled,
[26:45] what were the sources, the data on the sources, the double counting
[26:49] on the projects that have been included in this hundred billion fund which should not
[26:53] have been included. All of that and more, a deal to deliver tougher
[26:57] national Climate Plan in twenty twenty five and signing off on the Loss and Damage
[27:03] Fund, and filling it with hundreds of millions of dollars, which is the
[27:07] only area where there has been grand success that is pledging on the Loss and
[27:14] Damage fund. The creation of the Loss and Damage Fund happened in Sheernel shape.
[27:18] Operationalization of Loss and Damage Fund took place on the first day of the
[27:22] Climatsaar summit in Dubai. So that's one to look forward to. But again,
[27:30] you know, there has been a lot of questions in terms of who's
[27:33] going to pay, how much and where is it going to come from.
[27:37] We know that there are going to be multilateral development banks such as World Bank
[27:41] that is going to contribute. But look at the country contributions. Apart from
[27:45] Germany and the UAE, we have eleven million from a country. We have
[27:48] seventeen million from the United States of America. Certainly not enough. Yeah,
[27:55] your Opinunion has promised around who's seventy five I'm not wrong, all eus,
[28:02] it's the whole e exactly. Will the breakup all of them come to ten
[28:06] million, twenty five million, things like that, That's not a lot.
[28:11] It shows it shows the urgency. It shows the urgency by the development.
[28:17] I'm telling you that at the end of the day. When you're in your
[28:22] geopolitics of today, you forget you tomorrow and you forget that your There will
[28:27] be no tomorrow if you don't address this today where you're looking at geopolitical interests
[28:33] above climate interests, is going to cost everyone very, very dearly. Yeah,
[28:38] precisely. I mean it's not being you know, we can choose and
[28:42] like like you mentioned, you know, the Loss and Damage Fund. It
[28:48] was first announced during COP twenty seven in Inja last year, but it was
[28:53] not until a few weeks before CORP twenty eight that rich and poor country is
[29:00] they you know, managed to iron out some of their key differences on and
[29:04] agree on certain you know, key points of the fund. So it means
[29:10] that the path to come at this converging point for agreeing to this Loss and
[29:15] Damaged Fund, it was not at all smooth, and even after being announced,
[29:18] like you said, it's not enough. So although just you know,
[29:22] you mentioned World Bank, there was this one point that I read somewhere that
[29:27] I think that previously the developing nations they were not keen to have the World
[29:33] Bank manage the fund because they saw this as a means by richer nations to
[29:40] have more control over their finances. But somehow later the developing nations agreed to
[29:45] this term that okay, the World Bank will oversee the financing. So what
[29:51] exactly led to this agreement? Will we find that the World Bank will you
[29:56] know, manage the fund, but initially they were apprehensive. Very important point.
[30:02] Now, there have been five meetings this year alone on the Loss and
[30:06] Damaged Transitional Committee agreed on which agreed on a set of recommendations for the fund.
[30:11] The recommendations because we're talking about small island states who have been campaigning for
[30:18] a loss in damage fund for thirty years. They're the ones who thought that
[30:22] if it is controlled by an MDB, if it's controlled by a West Control
[30:27] bank, that they will have no say. Now, the fact that they're
[30:34] looking at a fund where to to ensure that the loss and damage that small
[30:41] island states, developing countries, these developed countries have suffered, particularly on a
[30:47] small island states, is the reason why there has to be a fund that
[30:51] needs to be created. Now, what has happened in or through this transitional
[30:55] committee, the organizational structure was made. Now what's the auganizational structure of the
[31:00] fund. The World Bank will be the interim host of the Fund for a
[31:04] period of four years. Ajabanga, who is the World Bank President, in
[31:11] one of the meetings had said that he's going to be mindful of the need
[31:14] to include a good representation of the G seventy seven countries on the Funds Board,
[31:18] which means that the Funds Board will have G seventy seven representation, Small
[31:25] island states will be represented, developing countries will be represented. So it's not
[31:29] the G seven, it's the G seventy seven that we're talking about now.
[31:32] Members of the Transitional Committee also called for the Fund to operate in accordance with
[31:37] the principles of UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement. So if you're looking at the
[31:41] Paris Agreement and UNFCCC, you are going to cater to the demands and the
[31:47] needs of these smaller states. And finally, to ensure autonomy, the Fund
[31:55] will have an independent secretariat with board, with with the board consisting of members
[32:01] that are from G seventy seven countries, from small estates, so the checks
[32:07] and balances have been put in place for them to feel that this agreed upon
[32:13] one hundred billion dollars a year loss and damage funding by twenty thirty is something
[32:20] that will help them and their cause and that they will have a voice on
[32:25] that board, that they will have a voice on how those funds are going
[32:30] to be used. So that's the reason why I in all probability, we're
[32:34] looking at the creation of this fund and the fact that Global South, which
[32:43] like you said, has lost an average of eight point three percent GDP right
[32:46] due to the impacts of climate change, will be compensated for. Will be
[32:52] compensated for the loss and damage from climate change costs about one five trillion dollars
[33:00] in twenty twenty two alone, according to according to a report. And now
[33:06] we're talking about the very same Global seuth having a say in ensuring the compensation
[33:13] and the losses that they've suffered are compensated through this fund. The only problem,
[33:19] like I said, is where are the funds going to come from.
[33:22] The pledges don't make up for the promises that have been made. Although COP
[33:30] twenty eight and all the member states are quite upbeat about the fact that at
[33:36] least this loss and Damage fund has finally been operationalized. So let's wait and
[33:42] see how much more can come into this fund for the smaller states to be
[33:46] able to transition to energy to renewables and find energy security through green energy and
[33:55] renewable energy. I think we'll end on that note. It's a very will
[34:00] have to observe it closely. It's stretching till twelfth of December, so maybe
[34:05] more developments and more key points, and if need be, Yeah, if
[34:10] need be, will of course host another episode pertaining to this particular topic.
[34:15] We will touch upon this Anna when we see their final outcomes of COP twenty
[34:21] eight and whether if they have been able to manage any success beyond the Loss
[34:25] and Damage Fund, because they will have to walk the talk on fossil fuels.
[34:30] They will have to see how they go about the climate financing issue and
[34:37] whether if that climate financing is actually going to come through or not. No,
[34:42] just aside gether, I'm just thinking the reason why the Loss and Damage
[34:47] Fund was announced on the very first day of the summit had to do anything
[34:52] with the criticism that was going on against Yue hosting this, against Jabbe being
[34:58] the president. So they just wanted to you know, shut everyone up,
[35:01] so that you know, just showing key how we delivered. Well, not
[35:05] really because that we're starting on not really. Yeah, they did know that
[35:09] the deliverables, if announced early on, will will kick off the entire summit
[35:15] on a positive mode. That could be, but if you see, everything
[35:21] has its own day and planned conversations. The loss and Damage Fund happened in
[35:28] the first day because the High Level delegation was supposed to come and kick off
[35:32] the High Level meeting on the second day, and so they wanted to have
[35:38] something before that. Others there's no outcome and the leaders would have come and
[35:44] gone. So I suppose that's why it was timed and maybe to kick off
[35:46] on a positive note. But if there was no conversation forward movement on operationalization,
[35:52] even then they would have had to announce something the loss in Damage fund.
[35:55] The fact that there was positivity there is the reason why it came as
[36:00] a great announcement. But we've had so many other conversations on a daily basis
[36:07] that are taking place within COP twenty eight. There was one on climate finance
[36:13] itself. We've had conversations on coal, We've had conversation on globs, global
[36:20] stock take, which we've actually not talked about, but before I let our
[36:24] listeners go. Global stock take is a very important aspect of COP twenty eight,
[36:30] wherein they're taking a stock of what has happened so far since the Paris
[36:35] Agreement and their flagship outcomes at COP twenty eight, which was kind of watershed
[36:42] moment. Yes it was, indeed, and so from Paris Agreement up until
[36:46] now where you have to have the North star one point five degree celsius temperature
[36:51] global warming as a cap and there can be no overshoot of that one point
[36:58] five degrees celsius. That certainly is an important as Earth is so already the
[37:05] Earth is already one point one point four degrees warmer as against this, Yes,
[37:09] it is so, it is it is very important for the world to
[37:13] stay on track to limit warming to one point five degrees celsius with no or
[37:17] minimum minimal overshoot. Is what there now the target is because we're already looking
[37:22] at a very disturbing report which says that it has already overshot the one point
[37:29] five degrees celsius mark. So the efforts have to be and the bigger failure
[37:34] if we have one achievement on loss and damage and the failure would be on
[37:39] on on global warming that if we cannot cap it, we are going to
[37:44] see freaky weather conditions and more loss of life and damage to property because of
[37:50] that than anything else. No amount of climate financing can help anybody if we're
[37:57] not if we if we do not manage to app our global more warming at
[38:01] one point five degree cels, yes, and no more or only with a
[38:07] very limited overshoot. Actually, and I think we need to ponder over you
[38:12] know this point. It's very important that. Yes, it's a very pertinent
[38:16] summit. Yes there are discussions, but on an individual level, I think
[38:21] we also we all should you know, do our bit and just contribute in
[38:25] whatever way it's possible to help whatever we are fighting. This war is ultimately
[38:31] everybody's is not like pick and choose. It's not anywhere discriminatory. It's happening
[38:37] to everybody. So focusing on this pledge, I would end this conversation and
[38:43] like you said, we would revisit it once it's outcome document has come,
[38:46] the COP twenty eight summits outcome document. So thank you so much, KEITHA,
[38:52] and to all the listeners if you did stay till the end, and
[38:55] if you enjoyed the discussion, have any inputs, let us know the number
[39:00] that you can reach out to us is eight five, double eight nine,
[39:02] double six, double nine six and the email idea is spots at the rate
[39:07] in today dot com. So thank you so much and we'll see you next
[39:10] week. Thank you, thank you,

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