UN Climate Change Conference: Key Challenges on Nepal’s Agenda for COP23

Nepal is all set to voice its key concerns related to climate change at the ongoing Conference of Parties (COP23), the global climate change conference, that began in Bonn, Germany yesterday.

This 23^rd global session of COP to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) is bringing together policy makers, scientists, lobbyists and private sector experts from across the world to discuss on global climate change.

The Nepali delegation led by the Nepali Minister for Population and Environment Mithila Chaudhary will be representing the country at the COP23, wherein, they will present Nepal’s detailed status paper on climate change.

“We have prepared the status report including our experience with climate change over the years and what we expect from the international community. The status paper was necessary also for making our participation in the conference effective,” informed Bishwa Nath Oli, Secretary at the Nepali Environment Ministry.

Paris Agreement and Other Key Issues on Agenda

Through its paper, Nepal urges COP23 over implementation of key agreements made under Paris Agreement on Climate Change in April 2017.

Besides stressing on timely implementation of rule book guiding Paris Accord, Nepal also seeks the international community for needed financial and technical support that it deserves as a Least Developed Country (LDC).

Citing damages it has witnessed because of recent floods, among other natural calamities, Nepal also seeks funding support from the global community while also urging COP23 to raise relevant funding and related support for calamity-vulnerable countries.

Paris Accord, adaptation, mitigation measures, means of implementation and cross-cutting agendas like climate and gender are the key issues Nepal has planned to raise at the conference through its status paper.

Through its paper, Nepal seeks developed countries’ contribution of USD 100 billion per year by 2020 as agreed upon during the Paris COP21 session.

“The Paris Committee on Capacity-building has been established to support countries like Nepal. However, not much progress has been made under this heading. The support mechanism for LDCs must be expedited,” reads a statement in Nepal’s paper to be presented at COP23.