The event will also deliberate over how to enable decision-makers to make tangible progress on carbon markets, advance the role of carbon trading and utilise the full potential of carbon offsetting
The much anticipated 27th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 27) held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, must prioritise the balancing of sustainability, affordability and security, a senior official at Strategy& Middle East told Zawya. “I believe resolving this trilemma should be the key priority of the COP27 conference,” Dr Yahya Anouti, ESG Leader, Strategy& Middle East, part of the PwC network. “If COP27 is successful in addressing the big ‘trilemma’, it will have a huge impact in taking important steps towards resolving the various issues of affordable climate change while at the same time advancing much-needed social security for the people,” he added.
Key Focus
Anouti said that COP27’s priorities should include discussions of technology, tech transfer, how investments are being made, the role of carbon trading, the full potential of carbon offsetting, defining the roles of developed and developing countries in reducing emissions, and enabling decision-makers to make tangible progress on carbon markets.
According to PwC’s research, COP27 is essentially an African COP, and climate finance will take centre stage as one of the most pressing yet thorny issues that governments must address. Most of the developing countries, among them the countries of North and sub-Saharan Africa, face significant funding gaps in managing the mitigation and adaptation measures that are urgently needed to address the growing climate crisis.
These countries are banking on the financial pledges and commitment of the top 55 countries responsible for greenhouse emissions to provide funding of $100 billion per year as laid out in the Paris Agreements. This funding is essential in supporting the most climate-vulnerable countries facing heightened threats of food insecurity, water scarcity and diminishing livelihoods.
Despite this, in the past, progress on fulfilling these financial targets has been slow. In fact, the $100 billion target has never been met; in 2021, the $80 billion secured from both public and private sources was the highest on record. One of the key tasks of COP27 will be to follow up on the finance issue, explore new finance goals and targets, and formalise processes to address “loss and damage”, a proposition that was made in COP26 and which the Group of the 77 (all the developing countries) and China have requested be added to the formal COP27 agenda.
Concurrent to the provision of funding to the climate vulnerable, the onus will be on the recipients of the funds to demonstrate the inclusivity, fairness and integrity of the disbursement of the funds and the use for their intended purpose.
Middle East: On the Right Course
Dr. Anouti noted, however, that the Net Zero ambition announced by many governments in the Middle East is on the right course and that the region will be able to meet those goals. “The Middle East has had a good track record of implementing grand visions and effectively implementing them.”
“The net-zero ambitions announced by some countries in the region are a great step, and on the ground, I am seeing more accelerated efforts in reaching these goals, whether it is a move towards renewable energy, waste management, circular economy, [or] sustainable development,” he said. “The discussion on climate change has already shifted from ‘what’ earlier to ‘how’, and we are starting to see more actions being taken from now,” he added.
