New Delhi: India expects a “clear roadmap” on climate finance at the ongoing COP28 in Dubai, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said on Thursday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on a visit to the Gulf city to attend the world’s most significant climate meeting.
Modi will attend the World Climate Action Summit on Friday during the United Nations ‘Conference of the Parties’ on climate, known as COP28 that is focused on reducing emissions and supporting developing countries deal with extreme weather events.
Several world leaders are set to attend the climate action summit to discuss ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and effectively combat climate change.
In the summit, Modi is expected to highlight India’s ambitious climate agenda and related issues. The World Climate Action Summit is the high-level segment of the COP28. The Prime Minister is scheduled to participate in three other high-level side events as well before returning to Delhi on Friday night.
The COP28 is taking place from November 30 to December 12 under the presidency of the UAE.
“Our clear perspective and priority has been that climate finance and also climate technology are a very crucial segment of all the global efforts in addressing this challenge of environmental degradation,” Kwatra said at a media briefing.
“We expect a clear roadmap to be agreed at COP28 on climate finance which would be important for delivering on the new, collective, quantified goals,” he said. During its G20 presidency, India strongly pushed for climate finance to help the developing countries deal with climate change.
“India is among a few large economies which are on track to meet its nationally determined contributions,” Kwatra said.
“India has taken a leadership role in shaping the global agenda on climate and environment including through focusing on this issue in two Voice of Global South Summits organised by India,” he said.
“Our approach to climate action is reflected in our principled positions in international negotiations and our global efforts to help the rest of Global South in combating this serious challenge of climate change as also its impact on the development framework of the developing countries,” he said.
India hosted the first virtual Voice of Global South Summit in January while the second one was hosted this month.
On Modi’s visit to Dubai, Kwatra said it would give another opportunity to further advance the prime minister’s vision to deal with the challenge of climate change and forge global consensus on “this very important issue”.
India is also co-hosting two side events that included launch of green credit initiatives. The other one is the launch of a leadership group for industry transition.
The agreement on the operationalisation of the Loss And Damage Fund that is aimed at compensating developing and poor countries facing the climate crisis despite contributing little to it was welcomed as a “positive signal” by India on Thursday even as it evoked a set of mixed reactions, especially from the Global South.
The UN climate talks COP28 opened on a positive note with countries clinching an early deal on the operationalisation of the Loss And Damage Fund with COP president Dr. Sultan Al Jaber highlighting that the science is clear and “now is the moment to find a road wide enough for us all to deliver climate action.”
India’s Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav posted on X soon after the decision was announced: “A positive signal of momentum from COP28 in UAE on the first day itself ... Landmark decision on operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund was adopted in the opening plenary of COP28. India strongly supports the decision to operationalise the Loss and Damage Fund.”
Loss and Damage Fund, climate finance and issues related to nationally determined contributions to reduce emissions will be the focus areas of discussions that India would be taking up during the COP28, Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav said
on Thursday.
He was speaking at the opening ceremony of the Indian Pavilion at COP28 where he underscored the importance of everyone to come together to fight climate change.
“We have seen India’s commitment towards its environment-friendly policies... There are many issues to discuss here...there is loss and damage, also the issues of the last COP like article 6 and the climate finance associated with developing countries, those issues will also be discussed at the COP,” he said.
Article 6 regulates voluntary cooperation among countries to achieve their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to reduce emissions.
It incorporates both market mechanisms and non-market approaches, including cooperation in areas such as finance, technology transfer and capacity building.