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SUSTAINABILITY & CLIMATE CHANGE

Paris Summit Puts Spotlight on Climate Financing for Developing Nations

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By Sayanthana K

The recently concluded Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, which took place in Paris, France, may not have yielded revolutionary solutions, but it did effectively initiate a crucial dialogue concerning the financial challenges arising from climate change and development. President Emmanuel Macron of France led this summit, which brought together leaders from developing and European nations to confront the urgent issues faced by economically disadvantaged and vulnerable countries grappling with a range of interconnected crises. Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman has also taken part in this meeting which could highly give importance to find some solutions in order to tackle financial instability in developing countries.

It’s very important to understand how relevant the term ‘Climate Finance’ is. It refers to financing at the local, national, or transnational levels, sourced from public, private, and alternative channels. This financing is aimed at supporting actions for both mitigation and adaptation to address the challenges posed by climate change. As a global element of discussion the UNFCCC, Kyoto Protocol, and the Paris Agreement emphasize the need for financial support to be provided by Developed Countries, who possess greater financial resources, to Developing Countries that are less economically endowed and more susceptible to vulnerability. Which can be considered as a compliance with the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibility and Respective Capabilities (CBDR). During the UNFCCC COP26, fresh commitments were announced to provide financial assistance to developing nations in their pursuit of the global objective of adapting to the impacts of climate change.

The year of 2022 wa not easy for the developing countries as the lives have severely affected by catastrophes globally like the flood in pakistan, hurricane lan in us and other natural disasters occurred in india.thus the developing countries started asking for a climate finance at cop27 which led to this paris meet.

Let’s dive deep into the key highlights and struggles of this meet. As a vital point of discussion , all the crises that create turbulence in developing nations set a platform for revisiting global politics. Developing nations are facing a multitude of challenges, encompassing poverty, mounting debt burdens, and inflation resulting from events like the Russia-Ukraine Conflict. In addition to these economic hurdles, there is a growing demand for these countries to transition to low-carbon economies, despite lacking adequate Climate Finance to support such endeavors. India had gone through dramatic change in all its sectors due to the covid 19 pandemic. As a struggling developing country out of such a contagious trauma India still could give a helping  hand to other neighboring countries.

Leaders representing the Global South are calling for Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to tackle cross-border obstacles and allocate greater resources for development, including climate finance. Developing nations are urging for increased concessional and grant financing to alleviate their debt burdens, alongside advocating for debt relief, specifically for the least developed countries. While recognizing the potential of private sector investments, they underscore the importance of long-term development funds as a necessary complement to private sector financing.

In regard the summit has announced a lot of milestone projects and programs such as the expansion of lending capacity for emerging economies, with an additional USD 200 billion being made available. The World Bank implemented disaster clauses to pause debt repayments in the time of severe weather occurrences. The IMF unveiled a commitment to allocate USD 100 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to support vulnerable nations. aiming to increase the share of renewable energy in the country’s electricity mix, the meeting announced A new Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETP) deal worth 2.5 billion Euros for Senegal.  Zambia successfully reached a debt restructuring agreement worth USD 6.3 billion, while simultaneously urging for a comprehensive Global Expert Review on Debt, Nature, and Climate. The European Union (EU) advocated for expanded global coverage of emissions through Carbon Pricing Mechanisms, with a portion of the generated revenues allocated to climate finance. During the Summit, it was announced that the long-anticipated goal of USD 100 billion in climate finance would be met this year. This commitment was originally made at the UNFCCC COP 15 in Copenhagen back in 2009.

Climate finance plays a vital role in both mitigation and adaptation efforts. To make significant strides in reducing emissions and combating climate change, substantial investments on a large scale are required. These investments are essential for implementing mitigation measures that can effectively curb greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, climate finance is equally crucial for adaptation purposes, as it provides the necessary financial resources to help countries adapt to the adverse impacts of a changing climate. By allocating adequate funding for adaptation initiatives, communities can enhance their resilience and implement strategies to minimize the risks associated with climate change. Recognizing the urgency, the 2018 IPCC report underscores the criticality of climate finance in achieving the ambitious goal of limiting the global average temperature increase to below 2°C above pre-industrial levels. The provision of adequate climate finance is imperative to support sustainable development and safeguard our planet for future generations.

While briefing the history of both the global and indian participation into this climate financing we can see that it’s not far away from its goal of inclusive development. In 2010, during the UNFCCC COP 16, a significant step was taken by the 194 member countries to establish the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The GCF was designed to provide support to developing nations as they confront the challenges of climate change, assisting them in transitioning towards low-emission and climate-resilient development pathways. With its headquarters situated in Incheon, Republic of Korea, the GCF serves as a crucial financial mechanism to channel resources towards climate action in developing countries. Building upon this progress, at the COP27 summit, UN delegates reached an agreement to establish a dedicated ‘Loss and Damages’ fund. This fund aims to compensate the most vulnerable countries for the losses they suffer due to climate-related disasters. By addressing both mitigation and adaptation needs through the GCF and acknowledging the significance of ‘Loss and Damages,’ global efforts are being made to support vulnerable nations in their climate change resilience and recovery endeavors.

While checking the Indian context the first step was , National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC), Established in 2015 with a purpose of providing financial support for climate change adaptation efforts in the Indian State and Union Territories that are most susceptible to the detrimental impacts of climate change. Next one is the National Clean Energy Fund, Formed under the Finance Bill 2010-11. This initiative was established based on the recommendation of the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA) with the aim of fostering clean energy adoption. Its funding is primarily sourced from an initial carbon tax imposed on coal usage by industries. The governance of this initiative is overseen by an Inter-Ministerial Group, led by the Finance Secretary who serves as the Chairman. The core objective of this initiative is to provide financial support for research and development activities focused on innovative clean energy technologies across both fossil fuel-based and non-fossil fuel-based sectors. By investing in cutting-edge clean energy solutions, this initiative plays a crucial role in driving the transition towards a sustainable and low-carbon future. And finally the national adaptation fund , which was established in 2014 with a corpus of Rs. 100 crores .Its aim is to bridge the gap between the need and the available funds. The Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) is operating the fund for this.

The summit acknowledges the significant disparity in countries’ contributions to climate change and their abilities to mitigate and address its impacts. Therefore, it emphasizes that developed nations should persist in their role of mobilizing climate finance, employing a range of measures such as backing country-led strategies and considering the specific needs and priorities of developing countries.

Courtesy: Modern Diplomacy


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AGRIBUSINESS & AGRICULTURE

Sweet Sorghum offers Solutions in Drought-hit Southern Africa

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By Hamond Motsi

The southern African region is battling with drought at present. This is the result of El Niño, a natural climate cycle characterised by changes in Pacific Ocean temperatures. It has effects on global weather patterns, particularly rainfall and temperature.

The drought has hit the region’s agricultural productivity hard. MalawiZambia and Zimbabwe have declared a state of disaster with respect to their current agricultural outputs. They are seeking humanitarian assistance in the form of food aid to feed their people. The downturn also has economic implications, since over 70% of people residing in the region’s rural areas rely on agriculture for their livelihoods.

The dire situation underscores how important it is for the agricultural sector to prevent, avoid or prepare for the impacts of climate change, which will also bring extremes of weather.

One measure the sector can take is to cultivate biofuel crops. These are crops rich in starch, sugar or oils that can be converted into bioethanol directly or through a fermentation process. Bioethanol, a type of ethanol produced from biological or plant based sources, emits fewer greenhouse gases compared to fossil fuels like petroleum, natural gas and coal. Commonly used biofuel crops include sugarcane, maize, grain sorghum, sugar beet, rapeseeds and sunflower.

These conventional biofuel crops do have drawbacks, however. They are highly susceptible to extreme weather events. They require high upfront investment for fertilisers, chemicals and irrigation. And they compete with food production – if they’re grown as biofuels they can’t also be used as food because of how they have to be processed.

So, researchers are always on the lookout for crops that might be good biofuels without those problems. Sweet sorghum, which is indigenous to the African continent, is one such crop. Unlike the better-known sorghum, it has sweet juice in its stems. In a recent study, I reviewed scientific literature to analyse the potential significance of sweet sorghum to African farmers because of its multipurpose nature and ability to adapt under harsh climatic conditions.

Multiple uses

Sweet sorghum has many uses. It can produce grains, animal feed and sugary juice, making it unique among crops. The grains from sweet sorghum are prepared as steamed bread or porridge malt for traditional beer, as well as in commercial beer production across the continent.

They’re nutritionally rich, with high energy values (342 calories/100 g), proteins (10g/100 grains), carbohydrates (72.7g/100 grains), and fibre (2.2g/100 grains) as well as essential minerals such as potassium (44mg/100 grains), calcium (22mg/100 grains), sodium (8mg/100 grains) and iron (3.8mg/100 grains).

The nutritional value of maize is fairly similar: proteins (8.84g/100 grains), carbohydrates (71.88g/100 grains), fibre (2.1g/100 grains), potassium (286mg/100 grains), calcium (10mg/100 grains), sodium (15.9mg/100 grains) and iron (2.3mg/100 grains).

What sets sweet sorghum apart from a crop like maize is that it’s also resilient in arid climates and has multiple other uses. For instance, it produces a lot of plant material (biomass) as it grows, which is left over after harvest. That’s why it’s useful as animal feed too.

Animal feed is made from what remains once the sweet sorghum crop has been harvested and its grains and stem juice stripped off. The residue is high in nutritional content, which can improve the quality of diets of animals, including cattle. The grains can also be used for animal feed.

The sweet juice in the crop’s stalks is what’s used to create bioethanol. Sweet sorghum contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, which are essential for bioethanol production. Of the conventional biofuel crops I’ve mentioned, only sugarcane yields more ethanol. Studies in the United States have shown that sweet sorghum far outstrips maize when it comes to bioethanol production: it yields 8,102 litres per hectare planted, while maize yields just 4,209 litres per hectare.

Resilient

Perhaps most importantly given the southern African region’s current drought struggles, sweet sorghum is well-suited for cultivation in the sorts of adverse conditions that are typically challenging for conventional biofuel crops.

One of the key characteristics of sweet sorghum varieties is their drought resistance. It allows them to enter a dormant state during extended periods of dryness and resume growth afterwards. Research has shown that, under intense water scarcity conditions, sweet sorghum makes use of its stalk juice to supplement its plant needs.

Sweet sorghum’s ability to withstand low water and nitrogen inputs, as well as its tolerance for salinity and drought stress, makes it an ideal crop for farmers in arid regions. This is why it’s widely used in other parts of the world, including the USBrazil and China.

Investing in sweet sorghum

The continent’s current agriculture value chain is dominated by major crops like maize, wheat and rice, which all originate from outside Africa. Not enough attention is given to crops of African origin, like sweet sorghum, even though it is a multipurpose, hardy crop with great potential for farmers. People are more familiar with sorghum, not the sweet variety, and it is also under-researched.

Governments should be using their agriculture extension services to raise awareness among farmers and consumers about the benefits and practical applications of sweet sorghum in people’s diets.

Developing recipes and secondary or industrial products can enhance the feasibility and awareness of sweet sorghum farming. By investing in research and development, the full potential of sweet sorghum cultivation can be unlocked through governments and the private sector.

Hamond Motsi is a PhD Student in Agriscience, Stellenbosch University

Courtesy: The Conversation


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SUSTAINABILITY & CLIMATE CHANGE

Lithium Boom: Zimbabwe Looks to China to Secure a Place in the EV Battery Supply Chain

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Chinese investors have flocked to Zimbabwe to secure lithium supplies, promising local development. But analysts warn Zimbabwe needs more robust governance for communities to reap the benefits. Reports Andrew Mambondiyani

Wonder Mushove stared blankly at plumes of red dust billowing into the sky as more than 30 trucks carrying loads of lithium ore rumbled past his newly-built house in Buhera, in eastern Zimbabwe.

The trucks drive by Mukwasi village on the dirt road linking the Chinese-owned Sabi Star lithium mine to the tarred highway. They travel through the border town of Mutare to the port of Beira in neighbouring Mozambique. From there, the lithium-containing minerals are loaded onto ships and exported to China – the world’s largest manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries.

The dust hung in the air after the trucks’ passage. Mushove and his family were among dozens of households displaced by the $130million-mining project, which began operating in May. They were relocated to new houses built by the mining company about a kilometre from their old homes.

And yet, Mushove is hopeful the mine could “uplift the area and put it on the world map,” he told Climate Home News. For decades, the vast, hard-rock lithium deposits buried under his home were of little interest to foreign investors. Now, Chinese companies are paying a high price to access Zimbabwe’s reserves – the largest in Africa and among the largest in the world.

A lightweight metal with the ability to store lots of energy, lithium is critical for the manufacture of batteries for electric cars. Global efforts to move away from combustion-engine vehicles have pushed demand for the silvery metal, also known as “white gold”, to soar.

Chinese companies have flocked to Zimbabwe’s untapped reserves of high-grade lithium to shore up the country’s supplies, benefiting from the Southern African nation’s cheap labour and deregulated mining sector. In the past two years, Chinese companies invested over $1.4 billion acquiring lithium projects in Zimbabwe.

And more money is on its way. Last year, Chinese companies were awarded licenses that could see $2.79 billion in investment flow into the country, mostly in the mining and energy sectors. These investments could turn Zimbabwe into a key player in the global lithium-ion battery supply chain. Chinese battery manufacturing giant BYD could source some of its lithium from Zimbabwe, after buying a stake in the Chinese owners of the Sabi Star mine.

But Zimbabwe’s poor progress on establishing robust resource governance threatens to keep communities like Mushove’s from seeing any of the benefits, analysts told Climate Home.

While endowed with vast mineral wealth, Zimbabwe has so far failed to turn its underground riches, including diamonds and gold, into revenues for development. Regulatory gapshuman rights abusesillegal trade, and alleged corruption have all been barriers.

recent investigation by NGO Global Witness in Zimbabwe, Namibia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo found that there is a danger of history repeating itself with lithium mining without rigorous screening for corruption and social and environmental harms.

But Zimbabwe’s president Emmerson Mnangagwa is betting on the lithium rush to catapult the country into an upper-middle-income economy by 2030. To achieve this, Mnangagwa aspires to turn Zimbabwe into a battery manufacturing hub.

China’s lithium rush

China towers over the lithium-ion battery supply chain. But its own lithium resources are limited and it has sought to secure access to deposits overseas.

Isolated by the West and slapped with 20 years of sanctions because of human rights violations, Zimbabwe has turned towards China, now the country’s largest foreign investor.

Since the 1950s, China’s foreign policy has been guided by “five principles of peaceful co-existence“, including a commitment not to interfere in another country’s internal affairs. This principle, which encapsulates China’s approach, has set it apart from western investors.

Zimbabwe’s “opacity and disregard for human rights has made it cheap for the Chinese to exploit minerals” in the country, said James Mupfumi, director of the Centre for Research and Development, a local NGO advocating for accountability in the natural resource sector.

Zimbabwean law vests all mineral rights to the president. With no requirements to disclose the beneficial owners of mining projects, “there is no due diligence and parliamentary oversight on Chinese investments,” Mupfumi explained.

“Above all, Zimbabwe requires a government that prioritises public accountability of mineral wealth, not the self-enrichment of a few political elites,” he added.

The ministry of mines did not respond to a request for comment.


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SUSTAINABILITY & CLIMATE CHANGE

EARTH DAY 2024: Packaging Is the Biggest Driver of Global Plastics Use

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Earth Day, celebrated annually on April 22, marks a global commitment to environmental protection and sustainability. The first Earth Day took place in 1970, ignited by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, who aimed to raise awareness about environmental issues and mobilize action to address them. Since then, Earth Day has evolved into a worldwide movement, engaging millions of people across the globe in activities such as tree planting, clean-up campaigns and advocacy for environmental policies. Its organizer is EARTHDAY.ORG, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting environmental conservation and mobilizing communities to take action for a healthier planet.

The theme of this year’s Earth Day is “Planet vs. Plastics” – a theme chosen to raise awareness of the damage done by plastic to humans, animals and the planet and to promote policies aiming to reduce global plastic production by 60 percent by 2040.

As our chart shows, global plastics use has increased rapidly over the past few decades, growing 250 percent since 1990 to reach 460 million tonnes in 2019, according to the OECD’s Global Plastics Outlook, which projects another 67-percent increase in global plastics use by 2040 and for the world’s annual plastic use to exceed one billion tonnes by 2052. As our chart shows, packaging is the largest driver of global plastics use, which is why a rapid phasing out of all single use plastics by 2030 is one of the policy measures proposed under EARTHDAY.ORG’s 60X40 framework.

Other major applications of plastics include building and construction, transportation as well as textiles, with the fast fashion industry particularly guilty of adding to the world’s plastic footprint. “The fast fashion industry annually produces over 100 billion garments,” the Earth Day organizers write. “Overproduction and overconsumption have transformed the industry, leading to the disposability of fashion. People now buy 60 percent more clothing than 15 years ago, but each item is kept for only half as long.” Most importantly, the organization points out that 85 percent of disposed garments end up in landfills or incinerators, while just 1 percent are being recycled.

  1. Infographic: Packaging Is the Biggest Driver of Global Plastics Use | Statista

Felix Richter is a Data Journalist


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