Bangladesh wants to see a phase out of fossil fuels, "but there has to be a differentiation between developed countries and developing countries", Saber Hossain Chowdhury, the country's climate envoy said today.
"If we want 1.5°C… then we have to take a decision on fossil fuels", Chowdhury told delegates today at the UN Cop 28 climate summit in Dubai, UAE. The Paris Agreement seeks to limit global warming to "well below" 2°C above pre-industrial averages and preferably to 1.5°C.
The prospect of curbing fossil fuels to hit climate goals has become the key topic at Cop 28.
Progress at Cop 28 on mitigation — reducing emissions — and the just energy transition has been "significantly insufficient", Bangladeshi environment minister Shahab Uddin said. "The science is clear: we must radically reduce greenhouse gas emissions to meet the 1.5°C temperature goal with no overshoot", he added.
If the world can "mitigate effectively", that will reduce the financial burden of adaptation — adjusting to the effects of climate change where possible — and loss and damage, Chowdhury said. Loss and damage refers to the irreversible and unavoidable effects of climate change, such as extreme weather events or rising sea levels.
"Developed countries must lead the way [on addressing emissions] with developing countries following suit in line with their respective abilities", Uddin said. He also called for progress on climate finance, urging a 50:50 balance between finance for adaptation and mitigation.
The focus on adaptation has grown in recent days at Cop 28, and a new draft negotiating text was released today, suggesting some progress on the issue. But "adaptation has its limits", Chowdhury said. "Bangladesh is ground zero for climate change", he added.
Bangladesh is a member of the G77 — a broad UN negotiating bloc of developing countries, many of which are very vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
