UN biodiversity talks approach ‘Copenhagen or Paris’ moment
22/11/2022: The UN biodiversity summit in Montreal in December will seek agreement to reverse nature loss and restore ecosystems by 2030. Negotiations on finance will aim to mobilize $200 billion per year and phase out subsidies for nature-destructive practices.
Source: Climate Home News
Regional force ready to replace Monusco in DRC
20/11/2022: Amidst signs of a breakthrough in the push for peace in eastern DR Congo, the East African Regional Force is preparing to take over from UN peacekeepers. Monusco's mission has been tainted, with both Congolese politicians and civilians accusing it of inaction.
Source: The East African
UN decision to advance crimes against humanity treaty
18/11/2022: Unlike for the crimes of genocide, torture, apartheid, and forced disappearances, there is no international treaty specifically devoted to crimes against humanity, despite their proliferation in every region of the globe. The UN General Assembly has now agreed to draft a treaty on such crimes.
Source: Human Rights Watch
What was decided at COP27 climate talks
20/11/2022: Developing countries got the loss and damage fund they fought for at COP27, on the proviso that the burden of paying into it does not all fall on rich governments. A transitional committee will look into what funding is needed and where the money should come from.
Source: Climate Home News
African activists oppose local fossil fuel developments
17/11/2022: African delegations have exploited COP27 to embrace the new scramble for oil and gas in the continent. according to Greenpeace. However, African activists pledge concerted resistance to local fossil fuel expansion.
Source: Greenpeace International
Is it time to lift sanctions on Syria?
15/11/2022: An independent UN expert has called for all sanctions against Syria to be lifted. But legal experts and Syrian activists do not agree. Sanctions were imposed on Syria by European countries and the US in 2011, when the authoritarian leader, Bashar Assad, sparked a civil war.
Source: DW
New initiative to finance minigrids in over 20 African countries
15/11/2022: Launched at COP27, the Africa Minigrids Program aims to mobilise $65 billion in new investments to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy minigrids in 21 countries. Half of the people living in sub-Saharan Africa lack access to electricity.
Source: UN Development Programme
Is natural gas the solution to energy for all in Africa?
10/11/2022: The number of people without electricity in sub-Saharan Africa is rising, almost back to its 2013 peak. The fall out from the Ukraine war has encouraged African governments to boost investment in gas, despite the consequences for climate change.
Source: Devex
Milestone against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing
7/11/2022: A hundred States have committed to the UN Agreement on Port State Measures, a binding instrument which denies port access and use to foreign vessels engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. One in every five fish caught around the world may originate from such fishing.
Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organization
UN climate summit set for tough negotiations in final week
11/11/2022: Developing countries showed a united front during the first week of COP27 on the need for a dedicated fund for loss and damage, ideally financed by taxes on fossil fuel firms. Notably, the conference is being attended by over 6,000 members of coal, oil and gas companies.
Source: China Dialogue