Cop28 momentum must stay the course

Cop28 at Expo City Dubai on December 3. Getty Images

It is rare for breakthroughs to take place so early in an international summit – especially when topics are contentious, voices are diverse and timelines unyielding. But the Cop28 climate meeting, held in Dubai, had only just begun on Thursday when a strong start was made with the key announcement of a deal to finance a loss and damage fund to assist vulnerable countries in coping with climate change.

During his opening address at the summit, President Sheikh Mohamed had also said the UAE would pledge $30 billion towards a new investment vehicle to combat climate change. The Alterra fund seeks to raise $250 billion globally in the next six years to help create a fairer climate finance system. US President Joe Biden described the vehicle as a reflection of the commitment to broadening “clean energy investments and reducing emissions globally”.

Both announcements represented encouraging early momentum for one of the largest gatherings and discussions on climate action.

The creation of the loss and damage fund was agreed to last year, at Cop27 in Egypt, though not all participants were on the same page about how to implement it. Since November last year, there has been a series of events around the world – floods, fires, landslides – that have only highlighted further the predicament of vulnerable countries and the need for richer nations to compensate them, not just as a moral duty but out of fairness and equitability.

Historically, it is the more developed, richer nations that have had a larger role in causing the emissions, warming and damage to the Earth that we continue to witness. The loss and damage deal involves compensating (though many, notably the US, object to that term) countries that are less blameworthy, if at all, for the effects of climate change that befall their part of the world. At Cop28, wealthier nations, including some formally considered by the UN to be developing countries, have finally allocated a clear budget to that end.

“The fact that we have been able to achieve such a significant milestone on the first day of this Cop is unprecedented. This is historic,” said Cop28 President Dr Sultan Al Jaber.

Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defence Fund, even said, "It could be the single most impactful day of announcements from any Cop in my 30 years at the Environmental Defence Fund."

This momentum must be kept up in the crucial days ahead.

On Saturday at the summit, 50 companies, which together produce more than 40 per cent of the world's oil output, made significant progress as they signed an Oil and Gas Decarbonisation Charter, which aims for net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier. The pledges include a drastic abatement of methane – the second-largest contributor to climate change after carbon emissions. Another important promise is to end gas flaring by 2030.

These are not easy targets for any of these entities, the majority of whom are national oil companies. But the fact remains that more big oil producers need to get on board and commit to doing their part to curtail emissions that accelerate global warming. Some of the world's larger methane producers are not signatories yet.

In the coming days, as more talks take place and new deals are struck, it will be essential that gains are made on the toughest, most awkward climate issues that remain. And it will be critical, moreover, that measurable targets are established so that the next global stocktake to check on climate progress, scheduled for 2028, presents a less alarming picture.