On yet another occasion through a close-of-conference statement of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) on climate change, measures agreed to must be operationalised if the conference is to be seen as meaningful. Once again, progress hangs dependent on the Industrial Group of countries keeping promises to assist SIDS and to take action inside their own states as promised to save the world from imminent disaster.
The responsibility is also shared with the Group of 20, which in addition to the Seven, contains the likes of Brazil, Argentina, India, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and others. Those countries also have to ignite the already stipulated measures needed to conquer the global climate catastrophe already with us on planet Earth.
Even without listing the promises, the reality of the problem is essentially two-fold. The industrial states and those in the G20 have to begin to transform their production methods away from being almost completely dependent on fossil fuels, to a green development production which utilises more natural energy sources to cut back on the harmful gases pumped into the atmosphere. And secondly, these large industrial countries have to assist with the funding of developing and poor countries to achieve mitigation and to adapt to climate change.
In the instance of mitigation, the assistance is needed to reduce the production of greenhouse gases, and to develop strategies to adapt to the realities of climate change. To assist with the process which SIDS must seriously embark upon in a significant manner, there is the absolute need for the rich industrial states, which are far and away the major polluters, to keep their commitments to promises previously made and reiterated in Antigua last week.
Regarding the renewed and new promises, the United States must annually contribute US$11 billion to assist with programmes of mitigation and adaptation, the European Union has to mobilise the EURO 300 billion annually promised in public and private investments with several initiatives in the developing world, and the target of the Green Climate Fund to raise US$50 billion to better enable countries to put forward ambitious programmes to counter the climate change disaster must be achieved.
Specifically, there are a few differences in commitments previously made by the said industrial world, many of which remain unfulfilled in part or in whole.
In addition to the promises to assist SIDS to counter and cope with the harmful impacts on their islands and continentally situated states, are the measures which have been promised by the industrial world to cut back on their production of harmful gases. However, in several such countries, there has been no real shift away from the use of fossil fuels for industrial production.
In reality, many important sectors and individuals in such countries, and many powerful and influential individuals and institutions, have denied the findings and warnings of climate scientists. Coming from them, there is only commitment to reverse any such measures which have been taken by other governments and institutions; prime among the deniers are leaders of the Republican Party in the United States.
So once again, much hangs on whether or not the major industrial polluters will keep their promises to assist the SIDS to mitigate and adapt, and to themselves make major changes to their consumption of fossil fuels.
