Source: President expected in Azerbaijan for climate indaba | The Sunday Mail
President Mnangagwa has left Harare for Azerbaijan for COP29. He was seen off Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport by Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga; Defence Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri; Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Jenfan Muswere; service chiefs and senior Government officials Kuda Bwititi in BAKU, Azerbaijan
PRESIDENT MNANGAGWA is expected here today to join other world leaders at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as the Conference of the Parties (COP29), where financing of climate change mitigation is expected to be one of the main items on the agenda.
The President left Harare last night and was seen off at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport by Vice President Dr Constatino Chiwenga; Defence Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri; Chief Secretary in the Office of the President and Cabinet Dr Martin Rushwaya; Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Jenfan Muswere; service chiefs and senior Government officials.
Dr Chiwenga is the Acting President.
Tomorrow, President Mnangagwa will meet with Zimbabweans living in Azerbaijan, among other engagements.
This year’s COP29 comes at a crucial moment, as the latest UN climate report underscores the need for accelerated action to mitigate the devastating effect of climate change.
Developed nations, as main contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, will face increased pressure to provide greater financial support to developing countries like Zimbabwe, which are already grappling with climate change-induced droughts, floods and heatwaves.
COP29 runs from tomorrow until November 22.
President Mnangagwa, who is also the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Chairperson, will attend the COP29 opening ceremony tomorrow alongside other Heads of State and Government.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, he is scheduled to participate in the World Leaders Climate Action Summit (WLCAS), which will be hosted by Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev. This summit aims to drive forward climate action and enhance commitments to emission reduction, climate adaptation and addressing climate-related loss and damage.
In a statement on its website, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said: “His Excellency Mr Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, has invited Heads of State and Government to participate in the World Leaders Climate Action Summit on Tuesday (November 12) and Wednesday, November 13, 2024, when the first part of the High-Level Segment for Heads of State and Government will also take place.
“The invitation to the WLCAS in the Republic of Azerbaijan during COP29 signifies the importance for world leaders to engage and enhance ambition and enable action to reduce emissions, adapt to climate change and address loss and damage, to implement and transform key climate-related decisions into concrete actions and credible plans to tackle climate change.”
In an interview with The Sunday Mail, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife Mr Washington Zhakata, who is also vice board chairperson of the Adaptation Fund of the UNFCCC, said the topmost agenda at the conference is how developed countries must pay developing nations for climate action.
“The special area of focus for this year is finance. This was after we noticed that all the actions require finance, be it capacity-building, education, training or technologies that would enable developing countries to transition from fossil fuel-dependent energies to other forms of energy. These other forms of energy include hydro, solar and other forms of renewable energies. All of it requires financing,” he said.
A national adaptation plan that has been adopted and approved by the Cabinet indicates that the country requires US$100 billion to be climate-resilient within the next six years.
“This plan needs to be financed to the tune of US$100 billion by 2030 for us to be called a resilient nation as we thrive to become an upper middle-income economy by 2030. So, finance will be central to all the discussions at COP29.”
He said President Mnangagwa, as SADC Chairperson, is expected to play a prominent role at the conference.
“The SADC Chair will have a platform to articulate some of the challenges that the nation and the region at large are facing. This will require calling upon all the forces, all the nations, to also consider the provision of adequate, dependable and accessible resources for the SADC region as we are reeling under the terrible impacts of climate change.”
Climate change expert Mr Archieford Chemhere, who is also attending the conference in Baku, said: “COP29 presents unique opportunities for the country to strategically position itself towards accessing financing that would enable adaptation and resilience-building initiatives.
“COP29 presents several significant issues and initiatives which are particularly relevant to Zimbabwe’s urgent need for climate action and support.
“Also, the conference presents another opportunity for the country to stand in solidarity with other Global South countries in pushing for a unified and more appealing new collective quantitative goal, which is expected to be achieved at COP29.”
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