The Fijian Head of Delegation at COP27 has made it clear to world leaders that the future of small island states hangs in the balance with the 1.5 Degree threshold. Fiji’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Satyendra Prasad, while speaking at the plenary session of COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt yesterday reminded parties that the Fijian and Pacific delegation did not make the journey to Egypt to spend too much time debating commas and full stops.

“We must keep our discussions focused on the substance and priorities we are here to uphold,” he said.

“I must first reiterate the importance of upholding the decisions enshrined in the Glasgow Climate Pact. We cannot let the tides of apathy, ignorance, and injustice drag us back from where we stood just one year ago.”

Mr Prasad said in Glasgow, Parties agreed to significantly scale up their commitments to reduce emissions by 2030. He said while Fiji welcomed the new commitments that have been announced, too many large emitters were still, stubbornly, working against the imperatives set in Glasgow.

“The world is barrelling down the highway to climate hell, as the UN Secretary-General warned us. It isn’t Fiji’s foot on the gas pedal, nor that of any least developed country or small island state.”

“We are passengers –– more like hostages ––trapped in a vehicle that is being recklessly steered by the high emitters. With hell on the horizon, we are told to trust a driver who we can see is blinded by greed and deaf to our pleas for action.”

Loss of livelihoods

He added that Fiji was facing the loss of livelihoods, of land and of fundamental cultural and traditional assets.

“For those where loss is irreversible, where emissions are negligible, where adequate financing has failed to flow, where the insufficiency of global mitigation efforts are most closely felt – this request is in the global interest.

“It is in the interest of the principles of the convention, of security, and of global economic stability.”

He said the Paris Agreement would be the epitaph in a world that crosses the 1.5 degree and two degree thresholds.

“Fiji implores all parties to realise where we are and what it means for where we are going. We cannot allow an Agreement focused on solutions to be out paced by the problems those solutions are designed to address.”

Story by: inoke.rabonu@fijisun.com.fj