President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has urged to agree on stringent accountability measures to ensure that all commitments on climate finance are met if vulnerable states are to stand a chance. The Maldivian President made the remarks addressing at the opening ceremony of the ongoing COP26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland.
Addressing the world leaders attending the COP26, President emphasized, he, as a leader of a small island state, has stepped up to many fora to say the exact same things he is stating in the speech because of the gravity of the situation, because our existence is at stake. Speaking in the context, President said commitments alone are not enough and actions must be taken.
Highlighting the assembly reaffirmed its previous pledge to provide USD 100 billion annually to developing vulnerable states, President expressed his disappointment that the pledge is nowhere near to realizing it. The president mentioned that even when a project gets greenlit for financing under these commitments, we are mired in red tape, and a myriad of reports, studies and other assorted paperwork that render ineffective these projects meant to address the urgency imparted on our communities by climate change.
Noting the Maldives is often cited as one of those low-lying countries that could disappear off the map because of the climate crisis, President said the Maldivian citizen are already living the steady onset of this reality. The president recalled the recent visits to six islands noting all of them were experiencing severe erosion. He said if the trend is not reversed Maldives will cease to exist by the end of this century.
Further, the president with regret reiterated if the rise in temperature remains unchecked at 1.5 and jumps to 2 degrees; it is a death sentence to the Maldives. Maldivians are determined to not let this transpire, underlined the president adding the citizens of Maldives are determined to be part of global solutions to reverse these trends, to change the status quo.
Moreover, President reiterated Maldives determination to lead by example by taking the most ambitious climate actions and committing to achieving a low-emission development and a climate-resilient future. The climate emergency cannot be solved by the actions of individual nations alone, emphasized the president.
Continuing on, President said major emitters must step up their nationally determined contributions and make even more ambitious commitments to achieving Net Zero and that countries must band together and assist the most climate-vulnerable states to adapt to climate change.
Concluding his speech, President stated all leaders and everyone attending the COP26 in Glasgow, despite the pandemic, traveled with a common purpose of not letting this opportunity go to waste, as, for a fact, this may be the last chance to get ahead of climate change.
Maldives announced ambitious plans to reach net-zero by 2030, with international support, during the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 2019. President Solih had called on wealthy nations to help vulnerable nations in capacity building, technology transfers and sourcing finance, remarking on concerning trends in global warming and the rate of sea-level rise. As a founding member of Parley for the Oceans ‘Future Island Nation’ programme, the Maldives had taken several severe measures to reduce and ultimately eliminate the use of single-use plastics in the country, aiming to become a fully plastic free nation by 2023.
The Maldives’ ‘Climate Smart Resilient Islands’ plans, comprising deliverables in 11 key areas, was formulated as a holistic plan encompassing achievable targets for low-lying small island nations to address the effects of climate change. The plan prioritises building a sustainable society that harmonises with fragile ecosystems while conserving eco-rich areas and rapidly transition to renewable energy sources.