ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will jointly chair the United Nations Climate Change Conference – COP27, along with President of Egypt Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, being held in Egypt’s Sharm-el-Sheikh from November 7-8.
The prime minister will be visiting Egypt from November 7-8 to participate in the high-level conference at the invitation of the Egyptian president.
The moot will be attended by the world leaders, think-tanks, and the heads of governments and international financial institutions.
This will be the 27th meeting organised by the United Nations regarding the problems of climate change and the need for sustainable solutions.
Following the recent floods in Pakistan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif effectively voiced for immediate action on the challenges of climate change, at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Heads of State and Government, Samarkand, and the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly, New York.
The prime minister’s proposal for global cooperation in addressing the challenge of climate change had received endorsement by the SCO member countries.
The SCO summit was held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on September 15-16.
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Last month, the United Nations Climate Change Conference – COP27, announced to hand over the vice-chairmanship of the conference to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif which would be jointly chaired by the prime minister along with the Egyptian president and the Norwegian prime minister.
In a statement, Foreign Office said that the Prime Minister will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and other cabinet members and senior officials during the visit.
This Summit is taking place as part of the 27th UN Climate Change Conference (COP-27).
At the invitation of the Egyptian Presidency of COP-27, the Prime Minister would also co-Chair, along with his Norwegian counterpart, a high-level roundtable discussion on “Climate Change and the sustainability of vulnerable communities” on 8th November 2022.
Prime Minister will also participate in other high-level events as a speaker, including the UN Secretary General’s roundtable to launch the Early Warning Systems for Executive Action Plan, and the “Middle East Green Initiative Summit” on 7th November; being hosted by Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, HRH Mohammad bin Salman.
The Prime Minister is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with several world leaders on the margins of the Summit.
COP-27 is taking place at a time when millions of people in Pakistan, and millions more in other parts of the world, are facing severe adverse impacts of climate change.
As a developing country most affected by this phenomenon, Pakistan would make a robust call, inter alia, for urgency of climate solidarity and climate justice, based on the established principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities.
In its capacity as the incumbent Chair of the Group of 77 & China, which is the largest negotiating bloc of developing countries within the UN system, Pakistan would also lead the Group in the climate change negotiations; including in thematic areas such as climate finance, adaptation, mitigation, and capacity building.
The COP is the supreme decision making body under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which meets on annual basis to review and advance collective efforts to address climate change. As a main stakeholder, Pakistan would continue to, proactively, make positive contributions to the global climate change debate, negotiations and collective action.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022