Media caught up with the President of AbibiNsroma Foundation Ghana, Mr. Kenneth Nana Amoateng at the closing of COP26 in Glasgow.
During the interaction, he indicated that with the outcomes of COP26, he believes that the COP has not reflected the urgency and solutions that need to address the lifeline of millions of people living in a permanent state of crisis- losing their lives, livelihoods, and homes as a result of climate impacts caused by rich polluting countries and corporations.
These are some of the issues he raised:
“1. Communities are experiencing droughts and flooding which is causing loss of livelihoods and destroying farmlands and homes. This makes a loss and damages an issue for us.
2. Communities need to build adaptive capacity to the changing climatic conditions they are exposed to. This makes adaptation a key issue for us.
3. Climate actions need funding support to be able to build resilient communities and reduce emissions from energy and transport which are the major emitters in Ghana.
We came to this COP with the hope that world leaders will respond to the needs of vulnerable peoples and communities. The science is clear. We are now in the era of Climate Impacts. Loss and Damage caused by climate change is happening already. Climate change is destroying lives and communities now, but yet your political leaders failed to respond to their plight.
We came to Glasgow with these four hope agenda
1. Global Adaptation Goal
2. Response Measures
3. Article 6 of the Paris Agreement on market
4. Finance.
Provide finance on loss and damage – and you failed! We are disappointed by the betrayal by the rich nations and also disappointed with developing countries for not standing strong in the face of this pressure and acting in the interests of their citizens.
Incremental progress is not good enough. What we need are concrete commitments to fight the climate emergency. This includes a rapid and equitable phase-out – not phase down – all fossil fuels through a just energy transition and revisions of national climate targets in line with the 1.5 temperature goal.
We will continue fighting for climate justice. We will do this at home and at the African COP27. That COP, held in a climate-vulnerable region, will have to be one that delivers for the vulnerable.”
