Delegates to the UN climate treaty have gathered in
Bonn, Germany for the first time since adopting the Paris Agreement during a
landmark political moment in the French capital last December.
The political momentum which delivered the agreement in
Paris also catalysed the signatures of 177 countries at an Earth Day signing
ceremony in New York this year.
Attention is now turning to preparing for
implementation as countries meet for the first time as the Ad Hoc Working Group
on the Paris Agreement (APA) to prepare draft decisions on all the issues in
the Paris Agreement which need to be fleshed out further.
The APA will present this draft legislation before the
first meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement once the treaty enters into
force – which happens once 55 countries covering 55% of global emissions or
more have ratified the Agreement. This is expected to occur sooner than 2020.
In addition to questions of policy and ratification,
observers can expect some procedural jostling for position in Bonn as countries
elect the co-chairs for the APA and begin work on its agenda.
"Post-Paris, climate scientists, political
leaders, and civil society groups all agree that the world needs a rapid energy
transformation. One example at a regional level is the African Renewable Energy
Initiative, which has already seen $10 billion dollars pledged to it. A
critical objective going forward is to take this initiative global with
renewable energy for the whole world. Looking forward to Marrakech, the
Moroccan Presidency has an opportunity to continue to advance Africa's
leadership by making COP22 deliver a real world renewable energy outcome for
the people," said Asad Rehman, Head of International Climate, Friends of the
Earth (EWNI).
Turning the promise of Paris into a reality will
involve bridging the "mitigation gap" between climate pledges and the
Paris temperature goal; addressing barriers to implementation, including lack
of financial, technological, and technical capacity; and equipping communities
to plan for and deal with the adverse impacts of climate change.
It will also involve developing strategies and policy
mechanisms to ensure adaptation action on the ground; and creating the
framework necessary for countries to address economic and non-economic loss and
damage arising from climate change.
According to said Azeb Girmai, Climate Lead at LDC
Watch, "The Paris Agreement needs to go beyond mere recognition of the
huge need for adaptation support and come up with a concrete plan to identify
the source and amount of support immediately. Communities on the frontline of
impacts from the adverse effects of climate change in Africa still have nothing
to celebrate as no new or additional finance has been secured in the new
agreement to urgently build their adaptive capacity alongside their on going
development efforts".
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