Sharm El Sheikh Climate Change Conference first week of negotiations concluded with the closing plenary of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technology Advice (SBSTA) and Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI). Substantive conclusions were adopted but only related to reports from constituted bodies. Much of the conclusions were procedural in nature meaning further work is required to finalize the relevant decisions, this will be discussed in the second week at the Ministerial High-Level discussions.
Two of the main issues that the Solomon Islands Delegation follows at this Conference are: Loss and damage and Finance.
Since Glasgow COP26 Solomon Islands maintains its call for the establishment of a Loss and Damage finance facility to ensure access funding to avert, minimize and address loss and damage and to operationalize the Santiago Network including a governance structure that addresses the needs of Small Islands Developing States such as ours and other country in the Pacific region.
However, official’s negotiation on these agenda during the first week was futile. Whilst developing countries want an independent Secretariat to host this facility and an advisory body to provide guidance and advise; developed countries on the other hand want existing governance entity without an advisory board. ‘This indeed is a tactic to slow the process’ said one of the negotiators from SIDS. ‘It is likely that we were not going to achieve this here’ he continues.
On the issue of finance, countries agreed that finance is the means of implementation and Solomon Islands as a developing country as well as a least developed country urges developed country parties to fulfill their promise and deliver on the 100-billion goal without any further delay.
Solomon Islands delegation are actively following finance discussions and some of the issues that we follow are on how funding can be targeted for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) such as ours, including through the established Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF) window for SIDS. On new collective quantified goal Solomon Islands continue to call for the balance of climate finance between adaptation and mitigation. Furthermore, we continue to stress that climate finance modalities for developing countries such as ours to be grant based.
As the week progresses so are negotiation dragging into the late evenings. Now in its second week, unresolved issues are now forwarded to the Ministerial High Levels to be discussed.
Solomon Islands will be represented by Hon. Dickson Mua, Minister of Forestry and Research who is also the Head of Delegation to represent us during the High-Level Ministerial discussions. Hon. Mua will deliver the national statement today Tuesday 15th November during the resumed High-Level Segment.COP27 is expected to conclude this Friday 18th November 2022.
SOURCE: MECDM PRESS.