Africa-Press – Malawi. President Lazarus Chakwera has accused rich nations responsible for global climate change of failing to commit adequate resources to cushion poor countries which bear the brunt.
Chakwera was speaking at the ‘High-level World Leaders’ Summit on Advancing Adaptation in LDCs [Least Developed Countries]: 20 Years of Support’ at the on-going 27th Conference of the Parties (CoP)27 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Egypt yesterday.
He said it is important that LDCs, which he chairs, around the world promote coordination as they reposition to promote their agenda. “It is an indisputable fact that LDCs’ contribution to global warming is marginal at best, and yet we bear the brunt of worsening climate change impacts, with 10 percent of our economic losses being occasioned by disasters.
“We also know that the flow of climate change finance from the nations most responsible for causing it is too slow and insufficient to keep pace with the worsening climate change impacts, not to say anything of the fact that the proportion allocated to adaptation is inadequate,” he said. Chakwera said, for the past two years he has been chairperson for LDCs, he has been encouraged by countries’ devotion to shared goals.
“It is now up to us to push for rapid start to the full implementation of the Doha Programme of Action. We have so much in common to enable us to do this, including the strong synergies among us in our shared work under the UNFCCC [United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change],” he said.
Earlier in the day, Chakwera took part in a roundtable on food security. Speaking during the discussions, Chakwera asked rich countries to assist Malawi with finances to rebuild the country’s infrastructure after it was destroyed by tropical storms Ana and Gombe early this year.
Chakwera said investing in food production alone is not enough, saying countries must also invest in necessary infrastructure to support that production.
“I must hasten to add that while we need financial investment to prevent climate-induced damage and loss of food going forward, it does not address the loss and damage of food that climate change is causing right now. 3.8 million Malawians have had their food lost and damaged because of climate change right now.
“So while we call on partners to support eco-friendly debt financial instruments in the form of green and blue bonds for purposes of transitioning towards a more sustainable food system, we also require financing for climate-caused loss and damage of food and other assets, such as roads, bridges, canals, power stations and markets,” he said.
Chakwera said these infrastructures are an essential part of food systems and must be repaired and restored urgently. Chakwera also engaged Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet Chief Executive Officer Simon Harford
Meanwhile, governance commentator Victor Chipofya has said the appeal for finance has come late, saying the rainy season is already here and that the infrastructure in question cannot be repaired in time before the rains start.
“Actually, the rains should have been here already. They have just delayed due to the same climate change; so, you cannot be soliciting resources to repair infrastructure now. The timing and planning is way off,” he said.
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