CSOs of vulnerable countries demand 1.5 degree climate goal

Demo on the sidelines of COP28 conference to phase out fossil fuels.

Dubai, Dec 4 - Leaders of  civil society organisations from the most vulnerable countries on Monday demanded to achieve the 1.5-degree temperature goal outlined in the Paris Agreement.

They  also called upon developed countries to fulfill their long-overdue commitment of $100 billion in financing as promised during COP 15.

The leaders made the call at a press conference titled "LDCs & MVC Peoples’ Expectations and COP 28," at the COP 28 Global climate conference centre in Dubai on Monday.

During the ongoing COP 28 Global Climate Conference in Dubai, the civil society leaders also highlighted the critical need for tangible National Determined Contribution targets from major carbon emitters.

Representatives from various Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) including Md. Ziaul Hoque Mukta of CSRL, Md. Shamsuddoha  of Centre for Participatory Research & Development, Shamim Arfeen of AoSED,  Atle Solberg of Platform on Disaster Displacement (PDD), Samah Hadid of Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), and  Lidy Nacpil of Asia Pacific Movement on Debt and Development  (APMDD) participated and shared their insights in the press conference.

The keynote address on civil society expectations was presented by Aminul Hoque from EquityBD, Bangladesh.

In his keynote presentation, Aminul emphasised the challenges associated with the enforceability of the Paris Agreements, pointing out the absence of monitoring and reporting mechanisms for carbon emissions reduction.

 He criticised the COP 28 presidency for denying the scientific basis behind achieving the Zero Emission target through the phased-out of fossil fuels.

Aminul also outlined key demands in favour of civil society. He said developed  countries must follow the scientific progress and set realistic targets to achieve the 1.5-degree temperature goal, they must pay their cumulative overdue of 100 billion dollar climate finance as promised and discourse of  New  and Collective Finance be designed in focusing the MVCs priorities and non-debt instrumental.

Besides, the demands also included that the synthesising of NAP (National Adaptation Plan) be defined as the GGA [Global Goal on Adaptation],  because the NAP is prepared under the UNFCCC process.

Md. Shamsuddoha said that the current process of mitigation is suicidal and he stressed the importance of  establishing a mandatory timeline for submitting long-term mitigation strategies, holding all parties accountable for a low-emission pathway, and achieving zero emissions by 2050 with a political commitment.

He called for ambitious NDCs coherent with the 1.5-degree Celsius target, based on latest scientific findings.

In her speech Lidy Nacpil criticised public finance as it finds itself at a crossroads. The IFIs (International Financial Institutions) and the global north governments who largely control them must stop their overreliance on the private sector.

Atle Solberg expressed deep concern about displacement which is one of the major problems that is looming large at present and future context across the globe.

"In this context, we demand effective measures that will support the countries to address the climate induced displacement through ensuring their rights locally and nationally," he said. - UNB