Rich Nations Upsetting Island States; Africa Goes for $100 Billion Climate Fund

The 42-member Alliance of Small Island States
(AOSIS) – island states most vulnerable to global warming – have lashed out
against rich nations for being “reckless and irresponsible” for
promoting a delay in the adoption of a new international agreement until 2018
or 2020, just weeks before the start of a United Nations climate summit in
Durban, South Africa. Meanwhile, there are plans in the pipeline to establish a
$100 billion ‘Africa Green Fund’ to address the issues of climate change
confronting the continent, says Professor Mthuli Ncube, Chief Economist and
Vice President of the African Development Bank (AfDB).

AfDB to launch $100b ‘Africa Green Fund’ to
address climate change issues

Ghana Business News (28 October 28 2011):

The African Development Bank says there are
plans in the pipeline to establish a $100 billion ‘Africa Green Fund’ to
address the issues of climate change confronting the continent..

Prof. Mthuli Ncube, Chief Economist and Vice
President of the African Development Bank
(AfDB) said at a press conference in Addis Ababa during the Africa
Economic Commission (AEC) Conference on Green Economy and Structural
Transformation that the Fund is still being conceptualised and depending on how
fast progress is made in identifying sources of funding the Fund will
kick-start.

He said the money is expected to come from
countries in the north and from Africa. He mentioned among others, pension
funds as some of the sources from which the money would be raised.

Later in an exclusive interview with
ghanabusinessnews.com, he said the Fund is designed around the climate change
issue. “It is just to make sure that this opportunity around climate change,
doesn’t become a curse, but only becomes an opportunity,” he said.

He told ghanabusinessnews.com that the fund
would be used to finance green projects in infrastructure such as dams,
hydro-electric power generation, geothermal, wind farms, and any form of clean
energy will fall under the umbrella of the Fund.

He said the Fund will also cater for the
AfDB’s socio-economic  programme such as
the Sahel programme in Mali to address the challenges posed by desertification
by reducing its impacts on farmers. It would also be used to provide irrigation
schemes for farmers to reduce their dependence on the rains, he said.

He is hopeful that the Bank will be able to
capitalise the Fund and launch it as soon as possible.

Economists, environmental experts, civil
society and government representatives are meeting in Ethiopia at the African
Economic Conference 2011 under the theme ‘Green Economy and Structural
Transformation’ to discuss and push for structural changes in African
countries’ towards a green economy as the continent and the whole world is
being faced with the challenges of climate change.

On Monday
October 24, 2011, Prof. Emmanuel Nnadozie, Director of Economic
Development and NEPAD Division, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
told journalists at a Sensitization Workshop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia that “The
impact of climate change is huge on the economy and the people,” he said as can
be seen in the shrinking of natural resources such as the Lake Chad, and sea
erosion at Keta in Ghana.

He said the devastating impact of climate
change is already costing Africa a lot already.

The requirements in terms of financial
requirement for climate change adaptation programmes in Africa he said is said
to be around $20 billion to $30 billion per year.

“Mobilizing this resources is a great
challenge and even if the resources are available, accessing is a problem,” he
said.

He called on African countries to do two
things by instituting policies to adapt to climate change and adopting an
economic transformation strategy that does not worsen the problem, ” because it
pays nobody for Africa to contribute to climate change which is already
affecting Africa worse than anyone else,” he said.

According to Prof. Nnadozie, Africa must
adopt a green economy strategy which promotes sustainable development, uses
less carbon and more renewable energy.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia

Source: www.ghanabusinessnews.com

Vulnerable Islands Urge Climate Deal before
End of 2012

A group of island states most vulnerable to
global warming have lashed out against rich nations for wanting to delay a new
international climate pact until years after the Kyoto Protocol on curbing
carbon emissions expires in 2012.

Reuters Report (3 November 2011):

A group of island states most vulnerable to
global warming have lashed out against rich nations for wanting to delay a new
international climate pact until years after the Kyoto Protocol on curbing
carbon emissions expires in 2012.

The 42-member Alliance of Small Island States
(AOSIS) said countries such as Japan and Russia were “reckless and
irresponsible” for promoting a delay in the adoption of a new
international agreement until 2018 or 2020, just weeks before the start of a
United Nations climate summit in Durban, South Africa.

“If we allow this to happen, global
warming problems are going to worsen and the impact on a country like Grenada
will be devastating,” Joseph Gilbert, Grenada’s environment minister and
current chair of AOSIS, said in a statement.

“We therefore cannot continue to delay
making decisions, to 2018 or 2020, as there will not be sufficient time for countries
to take action,” he said.

If world governments fail to agree a pact
that sets tough climate targets then small island countries in the Caribbean,
the Pacific, Africa and elsewhere will be further exposed to severe drought,
rising sea levels and stronger hurricanes as a result of climate change,
Gilbert said.

AOSIS said a large number of developed and
developing countries also want a climate deal done before the end of 2012 and
are calling for that timetable to be agreed at the climate summit in Durban.

Representatives from more than 190 nations
will meet in the South African city from November 28-December 9 to resume
climate talks, but a binding pact to reduce emissions looks unlikely to be
delivered and may take several years due to deep divisions between rich and
poor nations. [nL5E7LE2PU]

KYOTO DIVISIONS

The 1997 Kyoto Protocol covers only emissions
from rich nations that produce less than a third of mankind’s carbon pollution
and its first phase is due to expire end-2012. Poorer nations want it extended,
while many rich countries say a broader pact is needed to include all big
polluters. [nL3E7L30B0]

Russia, Japan, Canada and others have said
they will not sign up to a second commitment period unless it includes all
major emitters.

Two years ago, industrialized nations set a 2
degree Celsius warming as the maximum limit to avoid dangerous climate changes
including more floods, droughts and rising seas. Some experts say a 1.5 degree
limit would be safer.

Scientists have said carbon emissions need to
be cut by 80 to 95 percent by 2050 to keep warming levels reasonably safe.

This is well above the collective commitment
by developed countries for a 5.2 percent reduction from 1990 levels under the
first phase of Kyoto, and well above developed country targets currently on the
table.

The AOSIS chair urged developed countries not
to renege on their legal commitment and “historical responsibility”
to commit to new targets under the Kyoto pact after 2012.

Otherwise, he said: “What this will do
is ruin the Kyoto Protocol, wreck the international carbon market, and
undermine the credibility of the legally-binding international climate regime
that has taken the world more than 20 years to build.”

Benchmark U.N.-issued carbon credits traded
at an all-time low of 6.35 euros ($8.76) earlier on Thursday, before recovering
somewhat. ($1 = 0.725 Euros)

Source: www.scientificamerican.com