Final Hours To Rescue COP27, Warn Conservationists

Sharm El-Sheikh (Egypt):  As 27th Conference of Parties (COP27) negotiations enter their final hours, WWF calls for parties to intensify their efforts to deliver breakthrough agreements on key issues that are far from agreement and have seen little progress so far this week.

For leading global conservation organization World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), so far the summit is failing to deliver on the ‘implementation’ theme prioritised by the Egyptian presidency. WWF said negotiators must channel all their energy into ensuring this COP leaves a positive impact on the global challenge of tackling the climate and biodiversity crises.

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, WWF Global Climate and Energy Lead, said: “Parties and the Egyptian Presidency must inject renewed purpose and energy into negotiations to secure breakthrough agreements on key issues in the final hours at COP27.

On the pivotal issue of loss and damage, WWF is urging negotiators to agree to a finance facility. After a year of devastating climate-related weather impacts around the world, including devastating flooding in Pakistan, glacier and clod bursts in India and droughts in Eastern Africa, it is vital that a facility is established with concrete money on the table.

And on adaptation, WWF wants to see a roadmap that doubles adaptation finance, with 50% of public climate finance earmarked for adaptation that builds community and ecosystem resilience 

On the inclusion of civil society at COP27, Pulgar-Vidal added, “From the outset, this COP did not create the conditions for the effective participation of civil society. WWF strongly believes that the organisation of all COPs must be based on full access and effective participation of civil society in all UNFCCC-related processes and events.”

The climate crisis will affect different people and places unevenly, and so is likely to lead to inequalities within and across nations, and create injustice. All climate action must ensure it also helps improve human rights and social equity, according to WWF. 

COP27 extended by a day

The COP27, which was supposed to wrap up its work today, has been extended by a day to attempt to take the ongoing negotiations to a logical end, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav posted.

"COP is a party-driven process and hence consensus on key issues is vital to the process. The extension is an attempt towards achieving just that," he said.

"A lot of issues, including mitigation work programme, the global goal on adaptation, loss and damage, and climate finance are being negotiated as they remain contentious," Yadav added.