COP 27: Historic Climate Deal Sealed at COP27 as Climate Conference Takes a Leap to Save Lives and Livelihoods.

• Parties agree to a historical loss and damage fund at COP27 to support developing?countries that?are?particularly?vulnerable?to?the?adverse?effects of climate change.
• Paris Agreement remains intact – no backsliding or backtracking as commitments?reaffirmed?and?strengthened?despite?global?headwinds.
• Progress?was achieved across?the?board?at?climate change?talks,?and?1.5°C?goals is still in sight
• The agreement?calls for?multilateral?development?banks?and?international?financial institutions to reform practices and priorities to ensure simplified access to climate finance.
• Egyptian?COP?Presidency?urges developed?nations?to?follow?the?lead?of?those Parties who made substantial financial commitments.

Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, 20 November 2022?– Today at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27), Parties?agreed?to?the?establishment?of?a?historical loss?and?damage fund?as?part?of?the Sharm El-Sheikh Implementation Plan on climate change after loss and damage included?in?the?agenda?for?the?first?time.?The?new?fund?will?see?donors contribute?to?a global fund to save lives and livelihoods from climate change-related disasters.

?The agreement saw Parties recommit to keeping the 1.5°C targets for global temperature?rise?intact?and?significant?progress made?across?the?board?on?climate issues.

?The?agreement?comes?despite the?significant?economic and?geopolitical?challenges of the last year. It follows negotiations that ran into extra time and saw the Presidency and Parties locked in detailed discussions around the clock. Speaking?in?the closing?plenary, COP?President?H.E.?Sameh?Shoukry said:

?“The work that we’ve managed to do here in the?past two weeks, and the results we have together achieved, are a testament to our collective will, as a community of nations, to voice a clear message that rings loudly today, here in this room and around the?world:?that?multilateral diplomacy?still?works….despite?the?difficulties?and challenges of our times, the divergence of views, level of ambition or apprehension, we?remain?committed to?the?fight?against?climate change….?we?rose?to?the?occasion, upheld our responsibilities and undertook the important decisive political decisions that millions around the world expect from us.”

COP?President?Shoukry?continued,?“This?was?not?easy.?We worked around the?clock. Long days?and nights.?Strained and?sometimes?tense,?but?united and?working?for?one aim, one higher purpose, one common goal that we all subscribe to and aspire to achieve. In the end, we delivered.”

The?agreement?saw?considerable?advancements?across?the?board?and?pledges?by developed countries in relation to Mitigation, Adaptation, Finance and Loss and Damage for developing countries in line with the Egyptian COP27 Presidency’s vision for the COP.

?For the first time, the issue of loss and damage was?central?to?the?agenda at?COP and progress on its financing is a pivotal part of COP27’s success.

?Speaking?about?the?historic?decision on?loss?and?damage,?COP27 President H.E. Sameh?Shoukry?said:

?“We heard the calls, and we responded. Today, here in Sharm El-Sheikh, we established the first-ever dedicated fund for loss and damage, a fund that has been so long in the making. It was only appropriate that this COP, the implementation COP in Africa, is where the fund is finally established. Millions around the globe can now?sense?a glimmer?of?hope?that?their?suffering will?finally?be?addressed?swiftly and appropriately.”

?The agreement and pledges made on loss and damage aim to unlock greater ambitions?for?mitigation?and?adaptation.?During COP27,?financial?pledges were?made for loss and damage from multiple countries during the COP including from Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, and New Zealand, joining Denmark and Scotland, which had made pledges previously.

?The work of the High-Level Champions in implementing the 5-Year Plan for the Improved Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action for Enhancing Ambition was also welcomed.?In particular, the Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda, regionalisation of?climate?action?and?advancing?investment?and?access?to?finance?in developing countries were particularly commended. The COP further encouraged the High-Level Champions to continue enhancing their engagement with non-state actors in alignment with the new emerging priorities from COP27 and to follow up on the implementation of their initiatives launched this year.

?As?COP?President,?Egypt?will?now?steward?the?continuous?global climate?change agenda?in?line?with?the?Sharm?ElSheikh?Implementation. Plan?in?the?year?ahead.

?Speaking?about?the?year?ahead,?COP?President?Shoukrysaid:?“We?leave?Sharm?El-Sheikh with renewed hope in the future of our planet, with an even stronger collective will and more determination to achieve the temperature goal of the Paris Agreement.

?We’ve just adopted the landmark Sharm El-Sheikh Mitigation Ambition and Implementation?Work?Programme?that?will?hugely contribute?to?keeping 1.5?within reach. I trust that we all know what needs to be done to safeguard 1.5 and ensure that we never go beyond.”

PROGRESS?IN?RELATION TO?CLIMATE?ACTION?IN?THE?AGREEMENT

?The agreement saw considerable advancements across the board in relation to Mitigation, Adaptation, Finance and Loss and Damage in line with the Egyptian COP27?Presidency’s?vision?for?the?COP.?These?included agreements?in?relation to:

?Mitigation

• Rapid,?deep?and?sustained reductions?in?global greenhouse?gas?emissions are required - lowering global net greenhouse gas emissions by 43% by 2030 relative to the 2019 level - to limit global warming to 1.5°C targets.
• The?Sharm?El-Sheikh?Mitigation?work?program?was introduced?to?scale?up mitigation ambition and implementation.

Adaptation

Press?Release

Glasgow–Sharm?El-Sheikh work?program?on?the?global adaptation?goal progressed with the conclusion to happen at COP28.

• Parties to further integrate water into adaptation efforts to increase protecting,?conserving?and?restoring food?security,?agriculture,?water?and water-related ecosystems, including river basins, aquifers and lakes.
• Finance
• The need to transform the financial system, including Multilateral development banks and international financial institutions being called on to reform their practices?and?priorities,?align and?scale?up?funding?to?ensure?simplified?access to and mobilization of climate finance from various sources.
• Multilateral?development?banks?called?on?to?increase the deployment?of?climate finance three-fold up until 2025. This includes deploying a full suite of instruments, from grants to guarantees and non-debt instruments, without exacerbating debt burdens.

?

Loss?and?Damage

• Funding?arrangements?responding?to?loss?and?damage associated?with?the adverse effects of climate change were addressed for the first time.
• Historic loss and damage fund agreed at COP27 to support the developing countries?and?the?most?vulnerable?suffering from?climate?change-induced?loss and damage.
• Multi-million?USD?pledges?from?multiple?countries?to?help?respond to?climate calamities, with more commitments from other nations expected to follow.
• Institutional?arrangements?were established?for?the?Santiago?network for?averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change, notably in developing countries.

COMMITMENTS?MADE?AT?COP27

?In addition to the Sharm El-Sheikh Implementation Plan, many commitments were made toward implementing?climate?action during?the past two weeks. These included:

The?United?States announced?it?would?contribute?USD?$150?million“as?a?down payment” to initiatives to help Africa adapt to the changing climate. The money will?accelerate work across the African continent in support of the Adaptation in Africa initiative. This includes USD $10 million to support the launch of an adaptation centre in Egypt – the Cairo Center for Learning and Excellence on Adaptation and Resilience, announced by Egypt, which will build adaptation capacity across the African continent.

Egypt signing partnerships for its Nexus of Water-Food-Energy (NWFE) program?to?support?the?implementation?of?climate?initiatives?with?investments?worth?USD?$15?billion, including?an?energy?project?worth?USD?$10?billion?and eight food security, agriculture, irrigation, and water projects.

• The Green Renewable Hydrogen Forum was launched by President Abdel Fattah?El-Sisi, and?Alexander?De?Croo,?Prime?Minister?of?Belgium?to?find?ways to enhance investment?in Green Renewable Hydrogen.?Partners to the GRHF include UNIDO, IRENA and the Green Hydrogen Council.

?The G7 launching a new insurance system to provide financial aid to vulnerable nations hit by the effects of climate change. Called the Global Shield.?It?will?receive an?initial €200?million of?funding.?Early?recipients?of?this financing include Ghana, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

• A coalition of leading climate philanthropies announcing an investment of USD?$500?million?over?the?next?three?years?to?accelerate?a?just?and?equitable energy transition in low and middle-income countries while boosting sustainable development and creating new economic opportunities.
• The?US?Environmental?Protection?Agency?announced?it?would?expand its?2021 methane rule so that it requires drillers to find and plug leaks at all the country's one million well sites and reduce methane from the oil and gas industry by 87% below 2005 levels.
• Egypt?and?UAE?state-backed?organizations?inking?deals?to?develop 10GW?of wind power and 2GW of green hydrogen in Egypt.
• The EU and four member states announced the provision of over €1 billion for climate adaptation in Africa.?France, Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark have marked a starting point. Others are now expected to join in the initiative, which?will?enhance early?warning?systems, improve?funding?for?internal climate adaptation programs and create new risk and insurance systems.
• And the Egyptian Presidency launched a series of initiatives across the themed?days?of?COP27?focused on:?finance,?science, youth,?decarbonization, adaptation and agriculture, gender, water, ACE & civil society, energy, biodiversity and solutions that will be carried forward over the coming year.

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