Climate change is not a vague prospect but a reality, as evidenced by the catastrophic floods in Spain, forest fires in the Amazon, and heavy rains in South Asia, Tanzania Vice President Philip Isdor Mpango said at the COP29 climate conference in Baku, Report informs.
He noted that Tanzania is also not protected from natural disasters, which cost the budget 2-3% of GDP annually: "By 2030, we need $19.2 billion to fulfill our NDC commitments. But we only received $500 million. We have to use domestic resources to our detriment. This scenario is becoming the norm for all of Africa. This is absolutely unethical adaptation and causes very serious problems."
Mpango also emphasized that promises of real financing after the Copenhagen conference were not fulfilled, and it's time to abandon empty rhetoric and propose bold measures.
"Climate financing is primarily a matter of justice and responsibility. Therefore, at this conference, we need to create positive momentum so as not to nullify the achievements we made last year in Dubai," he said.
The vice president noted that Tanzania strives to contribute to global efforts to combat climate change, using its own resources and implementing projects in development and clean energy sources.
"However, we cannot talk about a just transition if we don't discuss clean cooking methods. About 900 million people in Africa still cook using biomass as fuel. This leads to deforestation and loss of 'carbon sinks.' Therefore, declaring clean cooking methods on the African continent as one of the priority areas for just transition and climate change mitigation. And we call for this to be discussed at the 29th Conference of the Parties," he added.