To combat global warming and mitigate the consequences of climate change, various countries have been collaborating by signing climate and development agreements. However, Jorge Moreira, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN OPS, warns that these agreements are far from being fulfilled.
Moreira highlighted significant agreements signed in 2015, such as the "Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction," the "2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," and the "Paris Agreement." Regarding the Paris Agreement, he emphasized that the signatory countries are far from achieving the established goals. To limit the global temperature increase to 1.5°C by the end of the century, emissions would need to be reduced by 45% by 2030 and carbon neutrality achieved by 2050. However, current targets indicate an 11% increase, which could result in a temperature rise between 2.7°C and 2.9°C by 2030.
Additionally, of the six billion dollars needed annually for climate financing, only 1.2 billion are being mobilized, leaving a significant deficit, especially for developing countries. "We are far from meeting what was promised. We emit more when we should emit less," Moreira stated.
Regarding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), only 30% of the 169 targets are on track to be achieved. Before the pandemic, developing countries needed 2.5 billion dollars to meet them, but this amount has increased to 4 billion. "The challenges are enormous, and the pandemic has only worsened the situation," said Moreira.
He also highlighted five main challenges for the world: peace, social agenda, humanitarian crisis, energy and digital revolutions, and governance. "About 25% of the world's population lives in conflict. An international agenda for peace and conflict prevention is urgent," he stated.
THOSE WHO EMIT LESS SUFFER MORE
Moreira stressed that less developed countries, like Mozambique, suffer disproportionately from the consequences of climate change despite their low emissions. "It is a great injustice where those who emit the most do not suffer the most consequences," he lamented.
Regarding biodiversity, he drew attention to the dramatic reduction in animal diversity. Currently, 80% of the world's birds are chickens, while 92% of mammals are livestock. The rest have disappeared. If there is no change in behavior, in the next 20 years, there will be more plastics in the oceans than fish. "The number of plastics has doubled in the last 20 years and will triple in the next 30 years," he warned.
Moreira also highlighted the need for investments in renewable energy and digital inclusion. "Africa has 60% of the world's solar potential, but there is little investment," he said, adding that three billion people are still offline, needing urgent digital inclusion.
To tackle these challenges, he pointed out five resolution drivers, namely adequate financing, political reforms, implementation capacity, appropriate global architecture, and leadership. "Without coordinated and ambitious action, global challenges will continue to grow, moving us further away from established goals," he concluded.
It should be noted that Jorge Moreira was recently a speaker at a lecture given at Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM).
(By Renaldo Manhice)
