PALOPs at COP23

The twenty-third session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) took place from 6-17 November in Bonn, Germany. COP 23 finished with slow progresses and with the discontent of the most vulnerable countries to climate change.

African Portuguese speaking countries were present at COP 23 in order to ask for higher technical and financial support to deal with global warming in a time where Africa is already suffering with climate change.

One of the subjects discussed at COP 23 was the use of renewable energies in African and Asian countries, in order to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases in these two continents. “It is important to invest immediately in renewable energies in India and Africa”, defended Gerd Müller, German Minister for Cooperation and Development.

The African civil society organizations were dissatisfied with the progresses at COP23 and criticized the lack of clarity about financing mechanisms for the most vulnerable countries to climate change.

In the Paris agreement, signed in 2015 at COP 21 and ratified by 170 countries, the wealthy nations pledged to allocate until 2020, 100 billion dollars per year for the most vulnerable countries to climate change. Although, since 2009, only 45 billion dollars were allocated to this fund. The African continent received only 4% of the investments.

PALOP priorities

Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and São Tomé e Príncipe made it known their major concerns and priorities.

Angola wants to reduce carbon emissions and strengthen the capacity to monitor and the systematic analysis of climate parameters, to allow detailed evaluation of the vulnerabilities of all the national territory, and will help to implement pilot policies. The carbon intensity is growing in the country, being the reason why the priority of the Government is to promote low carbon technologies.

Cape Verde gives preference to measures related to prevention and planning of river basins and to the improvement of meteorological and geophysical information system. For Cape Verde one of the main concerns is the funding of the Adaptation Fund. Cape Verde also asked for a more rigid revision of the carbon trading quotas of the major polluters.

Guinea Bissau says the investment in renewable energies, such as solar, the reduction of anthropic pressure on the forests, the fight against coastal erosion and the land degradation exacerbated by the cashew monoculture, as well as spread of saline front are the priorities of the country.

São Tomé e Príncipe, on the other hand, is concerned with the change on the rainfall patterns and its adverse impacts in agriculture. Coastal erosion, due to the so called “giant waves” phenomena that causes destruction, and the control trees felling for building houses, due to the impact of this practice on the island, are the climatic challenges of São Tomé e Príncipe.

More information available on the official website.