Page 6 - Major climate issues Commitments and financing

IV

From one COP to another, the difficult

n The key dates to fully

understand the commitments,
the standoffs, and the issues

n Within the COPs, more than

30 years of laborious process

n In Egypt, geopolitics is likely
to weigh with all its weight

FOR a little over thirty years,
the countries of the world have
been meeting at a summit, orga-
nized by the United Nations Fra-
mework Convention on Climate
Change, to organize the fight
against climate change. From sum-
mit to summit, the conferences
have sought agreement on the
adoption of a legal instrument or a
legally binding outcome, as well as
financing mechanisms, particularly
for the most vulnerable countries.
The challenge of the COPs is to
Thousands of people attended the Earth Show on May 30, 1992 in Rio de Janeiro before the opening of the Earth Summit which ran
reach an agreement on the reduc- from 03 to 14 June ,1992 (Ph. AFP)
tion of greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions. The negotiators take as These annual meetings are an tion of the climate system. concentrations from increasing.
their working basis the reports of opportunity for States to take stock Still, the results, from year to Here is a review of the main high
the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel of their actions in favor of the cli- year, are disappointing, mixed but masses that punctuated the global
on Climate Change) which compile mate and to discuss what should be sometimes crowned with success, climate negotiations.o
all current scientific knowledge. done to avoid irreversible disrup- without however preventing GHG

- 1992: The Rio Earth Summit, - 1995: Berlin, the 1st COP was a major turning point in the fight provided for assistance from de-
the genesis I t w a s against global warming. Indeed, for veloped countries to developing
The United Nations Framework the German the first time, a legally binding treaty countries. Following this agree-
Convention capital that was put in place. Called the Kyoto ment, the Kyoto Protocol was ope-
on Climate hosted the Protocol, it mainly aimed at regula- ned for ratification by the various
C h a n g e first Confe- ting CO2 emissions. The Protocol States.
(UNFCCC) rence of the imposed on 37 developed countries
was adop- Parties. It emission reductions of an overall ave- - 2006: The Bali roadmap
ted in 1992 was the COP rage of -5% compared to 1990 over M e e -
at the Rio that had set the 2008–2012 period. The other ting after
Summit. the format countries did not commit to quanti- meeting,
It ente- for future fied objectives but were involved in the United
red into force in 1994 and has COPs. Its mission was to reduce the process through incentive mecha- N a t i o n s
been ratified by 197 Parties (196 greenhouse gas emissions by setting nisms. However, the United States u n d e r s -
States and the European Union). Its quantified targets for each country refused to ratify the protocol, consi- tood that
goal: to stabilize concentrations of and region of the parties that have dering that it would slow down the the Kyoto
greenhouse gases "at a level that ratified the United Nations Fra- country's economy. In the following protocol
prevents dangerous anthropogenic mework Convention on Climate years, negotiations continued, and the was largely insufficient, and that
(human-induced) disturbance of Change (UNFCCC). US continued to veto the Protocol. they had to find a new battle plan.
the climate system". At this Sum- The negotiations were tense and
mit, the action program for the 21st - 1997: the Kyoto Protocol , the - 2001: The marked by the persistent stubborn-
century was created (Agenda 21) major turning point Marrakesh Ac- ness of the United States to refuse
.Two conventions were also initia- cord any compromise. But the US ended
led, that on biological diversity and At the end of up accepting the roadmap which
that concerning the fight against COP 7, the Mar- aims to sign an emissions agreement
desertification. COP3, which took place in Japan, rakesh accord before the end of 2009.

November-December 2022