'Most of world's emissions come from developed countries:' US climate envoy

World

Published: 2022-10-28 11:19

Last Updated: 2024-03-28 21:37


'Most of world's emissions come from developed countries:' US climate envoy
'Most of world's emissions come from developed countries:' US climate envoy

John Kerry, the United States' special presidential envoy for climate, said that all countries must 'step up' to do their part in light of the urgent crisis of climate change.

This came during a telephonic briefing on Wednesday only 10 days before the COP27 Climate Summit begins in Egypt.

The US climate envoy told reporters during the briefing, “What you see happening around the world now makes it more urgent and more clear than ever that we need to step up and get this job done – every country. No country has a right to be delinquent in not putting up an NDC [Nationally Determined Contribution], not strengthening it where they can, and not being part of this effort.”

He noted that the largest portion of impact of climate change comes from the 20 most developed countries worldwide, however, the 17 most vulnerable countries to climate change are in Africa, although around 50 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa are responsible for only 0.55 percent of all the world's emissions.

“I share the frustration,” said Kerry, replying to a question from a reporter from South Africa who noted that not all countries or regions are equal in producing pollution.

“We have to get this allocation right, which is why the United States supported completely the doubling of money for adaptation and President Biden stepped up and has created an Emergency Program for Adaptation and Resilience with US$12 billion allocated over five years, US$3 billion this year in our budget.”

He added, “So we're really deeply committed to this, and I hope this will be the year where people all kind of get on the same page, recognising that there are some special inequities and they deserve some special attention.”

However, Kerry did not discuss how important it is for the biggest polluting countries to reduce energy consumption, like China recently did amid the high levels of pollution and some European countries are attempting to do as winter approaches amid fuel shortages caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine.

The United States appears to be adamant to make a change on a global scale to address climate change, however, many say that there needs to be more than words made to solve the issue.

Two-thirds of Americans believe that their government should conduct more strenuous efforts to reduce the impacts of climate change.

The Biden-Harris Administration said that it is committed to mobilizing a whole-of-society approach that enlists states, cities, businesses large and small, civil society groups, and others to create a net-zero clean energy economy that benefits all.