Amid growing calls for urgent and strong climate change action, the supplementary Bangkok Climate Change Talks closed on Sunday, September 9, 2018 with uneven progress on the guidelines that will tell the world how to implement the Paris Climate Change Agreement. The implementation guidelines are needed to unlock transparent and practical climate action across the globe.

The implementation guidelines have been under negotiation since 2016 and are set to be adopted at the annual climate change conference, COP24, to be held in Katowice, Poland in December.

“In Bangkok, there has been uneven progress on the elements of the climate change regime that countries are working towards,” said Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change.

“This underlines the urgent need for continuing work in the coming weeks,” she added.

The Paris Agreement’s provisions that countries are working towards operationalising include increased action to deal with the impacts of climate change and increased and transparent support for developing country action in the form of finance, technology cooperation and capacity-building.

Crucially, the provisions to be operationalized also include the goal of limiting global temperature increase this century to well below 2°C, while pursuing efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C through transparent and ambitious emission reductions.

“In preparation for COP24, it will be critical to achieve balance across all issues. This is important because all parts of the regime need to function together in an inter-connected manner,” Ms. Espinosa underlined.

Countries have been grappling with how to reflect the contributions and responsibilities of developed and developing countries given their different national circumstances.

Of key concern are items that relate to transparently and regularly communicating actions, as well as how to achieve full clarity on climate finance now and in the long-term.

“The Paris Agreement strikes a delicate balance to bring all countries together. We must recognize that countries have different realities at home. They have different levels of economic and social development that lead to different national situations,” said Ms. Espinosa.

“This needs to be reflected in the implementation guidelines of the Paris Agreement. This calls for a political solution, but time is running short. Leaders need to engage and help solve these issues well in advance of COP24,” she urged.

This year, the world has witnessed flood-related deaths, livelihoods wiped out by droughts and expensive infrastructure lost across large stretches of the developed and the developing world.

“Clearly, we need to increase climate action significantly. Clearly, fully implementing the Paris Agreement is the way to do this in a balanced, coordinated manner that leaves nobody behind. The secretariat stands ready to fully support countries towards this important outcome,” she added.

The officers presiding over the negotiations, as well as the current COP presidency held by Fiji and the in-coming Polish COP presidency have been working hard towards COP24.

“I want to express my sincere appreciation to the Presiding Officers, COP President Bainimarama and in-coming COP President Kurtyka for their strong commitment and hard work towards success at COP24,” Ms. Espinosa stated.

Negotiations on a rulebook for the Agreement lurch toward their final act despite developed countries refusing to engage on key issues like climate finance

Nearly 2 ½ years after opening, negotiations on the rulebook for the Paris Agreement enter their final stage as countries agreed a process to condense a 300-page draft into text that can be negotiated later this year in Katowice, Poland.

“We have fortunately avoided scuppering the ship,” said Mohamed Adow, Christian Aid’s International Climate Lead. “Governments have empowered the Co-Chairs to turn the progress made so far into a more solid basis for negotiations in Poland. It is now vital for the Co-Chairs to change the course of the negotiations away from diplomatic doldrums towards a win-win approach and craft middle ground options that the whole world can get on board with at COP24.”

The Co-Chairs will have to remain transparent in their process, ensure an even-handed treatment of the options on the table, and refrain from inserting new language in order to avoid a mutiny later this year. However, larger concerns remain over the role of one country – and one man in particular – in frustrating progress.

“Under Trump the U.S. has set about renegotiating the Paris Agreement to escape its historical responsibility and get better deal for the Big Polluters it serves” saidCorporate Accountability’s media director, Jesse Bragg. “Led by the U.S., developed countries are trying to strip equity from Paris and force false solutions into the heart of the Agreement. But this type of obstruction is nothing new – the U.S. has long watered-down multilateral agreements before walking away all together. If we’re to get what the world needs from Paris, we cannot allow Trump to hold this Agreement hostage.”

Particularly frustrating for developing countries and civil society alike was an apparent refusal by developed countries, led by the U.S., to engage constructively on key discussions about finance issues such as their communication of up-front information, the process to establish a new long-term finance goal, and the replenishment of the Green Climate Fund.

Lidy Nacpil, Coordinator at the Asian Peoples Movement on Debt and Development, warned, “the U.S.’ cancellation of $2 billion of its $3 billion pledge to the Green Climate Fund and obstruction of the Fund’s replenishment – these acts are not only denial of its responsibility for the climate crisis. These acts will bring further harm to our people and communities.”

“The U.S. has announced its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement but still negotiates as if it is a Party, weakening international cooperation by not contributing to finance and technology transfer to developing countries,” said Meena Raman, legal advisor at Third World Network.

“After contributing the most to cause the climate crisis, the U.S. now expects developing countries to clean up the mess with no help whatsoever. This Just Do It Yourself attitude risks infecting the entire process and will hinder the much-needed implementation of the Paris Agreement.”

Harjeet Singh, ActionAid’s Global Lead on Climate Change added, “The Paris Agreement is on the brink. Developed countries are going back on their word and refusing to agree clear rules governing climate finance. If they remain stuck in their positions and fail to loosen their purses, this treaty may collapse.

“We have a mountain to climb before the next climate summit this December. Finance ministers must now step in and deliver on the promises made in Paris.”

“The U.S.’ siren call appears to be working, big polluting countries are falling in behind.” said Rachel Kennerley, International Climate Campaigner at Friends of the Earth England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. “Now Australia is openly talking of scrapping its already weak climate plan and withdrawing from the Paris Agreement. And other low-ambition countries including the U.K. are hiding in the U.S.’ shadow even while claiming to be climate leaders.”

“To be a real climate leader the U.K. and other developed countries need to provide real climate finance and phase out fossil fuels as soon as possible.”

The Global Initiative for Food Security and Ecosystem Preservation (GIFSEP), an NGO, has called on aspirants vying for political offices to include issues of climate change in their manifestoes.

The Executive Director of GIFSEP, Mr David Michael, made the call at the Abuja Climate Summit Walk in Abuja on Saturday, September 8, 2018.

GIFSEP, in partnership with 350 Africa, Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and other relevant NGOs, organised the walk to sensitise Nigerians on the need to protect the planet.

Michael said that his organisation had observed that many aspirants were yet to include the issues of climate change in their programmes.

‘‘This is something that affects our health and the food we are eating, as well as our existence as human beings.

‘‘That is why we are walking to sensitise Nigerians to know that climate change is a real threat to us and the future generations.

‘‘It is a problem that affects all of us without discrimination, although some people and places are more vulnerable to climate change than others.

‘‘That is why people need to drive actions against climate change and send a clear message to the government for it to respond to the will of the people,’’ he said.

Mrs Ibironke Olubamise, the National Coordinator, Global Environmental Facility Small Grant Programme (GEF-SGP), urged Nigerians to support ongoing efforts to address effects of climate change.

Olubamise, who said individual efforts were imperative in this regard, urged the people not to abuse food and water consumption.

“If you waste and throw away food, you are contributing to the climate change, and if you are wasting water endlessly, you are contributing to climate change because all these have negative effects on the climate,’’ she said.

By Deji Abdulwahab