Dhaka today urged European Union (EU) countries to support Climate Vulnerable Forum’s (CVF), chaired by Bangladesh, demands regarding climate adaptation and financing during the upcoming UN climate conference, COP 26 to be held in Glasgow.
The urge was made while foreign minister Dr. A K Abdul Momen along with environment, forest and climate change minister Md Shahab Uddin briefed the ambassadors of the EU countries stationed here regarding Bangladesh’s preparation and expectation centering the COP26 at the foreign ministry.
“We want their (EU’s) partnership at the COP 26 … so that they talk in favour of our issues that we will raise during the COP 26,” Dr. Momen told newsmen at a briefing after the meeting with the European envoys.
During the COP 26, the minister said Bangladesh’s major issues will be to get support from developed countries in climate adaptation to refrain people from being climate refugees.
“We will raise the loss and damage issue during the COP26 … and we sought their (EU’s) support in this regard,” Momen said, adding that the ‘loss and damage’ issue has been added to the COP26 agenda.
The minister said, he urged the EU to contribute in realizing the 100 billion US dollar annual climate fund that was supposed to start from 2020, pledged by the most carbon emitting developed countries at the Paris agreement in 2015.
“We are optimistic that the $100 billion US pledge will be ensured during the COP26,” he added.
He said Bangladesh will also raise the demand at the COP26 to allocate climate funds for mitigation and adaptation under 50:50 ratio.
The minister said Dhaka urged EU countries to make their national climate plan, termed as Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), aggressive for ensuring the target for capping temperatures at 1.5 degrees.
Dr. Momen said they also briefed the EU envoys about the Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan as well as Bangladesh’s aspiration to transform most of its energy sector into renewable power.
The foreign minister said the EU countries assured of providing technical support to Bangladesh in its transformation to clean energy.
Dr. Momen welcomed the ‘Net Zero’ carbon emission by 2050 declaration made by the G7 countries, as those developed nations are the most carbon emitters in the globe.
However, Dr Momen said Bangladesh would not be able to declare the ‘Net Zero’ emission by 2050 as it is still a developing country and emits nominal amounts of carbon compared to the developed nations.
Dr. Momen said as the President of CVF, Dhaka has proposed to hold a high- level climate summit on the sideline of COP 26. “The proposal is yet to be finalized, but it is on the table,” he added.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina along with other world leaders is set to join the high-level session of COP 26 from November 1 to 3 in Glasgow.
The Bangladesh Prime Minister is scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with her British counterpart Boris Johnson after attending the high-level event at COP 26, either in Glasgow or in London.
The COP-26’s main host British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, earlier said he expected the event to be a “turning point for humanity”.
