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- The meeting was advertised in advance as a “frank and informal exchange” of views between leaders
- Guterres said after the meeting that he had discussed the “triple global crisis” of food, energy, and finance with global leaders
CAIRO: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has stressed the importance of reducing emissions, building resilience, and boosting climate finance for developing countries.
He was speaking at the closed-door meeting of heads of state and government on climate change, organized in partnership with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The meeting, co-chaired by Guterres and El-Sisi, was advertised in advance as a “frank and informal exchange” of views between leaders and an opportunity to discuss key issues ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference, COP27, to take place in Sharm El-Sheikh in November.
El-Sisi said: “We participated together in this meeting, in preparation for the climate summit in the UK, and today, we are a few weeks away from the 27th climate summit in Sharm El-Sheikh.”
The meeting comes in light of events over the past year which have caused political crises and challenges in food, energy, and supply chains, affecting all parts of the world, said El-Sisi.
These challenges represent additional burdens on all countries, especially the developing ones, he added.
“But we must always rely on objective scientific reports, which unequivocally confirm that climate change remains the most dangerous existential challenge,” said the president.
As a result of rising temperatures, El-Sisi pointed to the recent floods that struck Pakistan and the unprecedented forest fires witnessed in Europe and the US, and called for immediate measures to put climate pledges into practice.
“As an international community, aside from any global condition or political dispute, we will not renege on the commitments we have taken on, the pledges we have made,” said the president.
“The policies we have adopted have already made significant gains in the face of climate change.”
Guterres said after the meeting that he had discussed the “triple global crisis” of food, energy, and finance with global leaders, as well as the climate.
He urged the leaders of the world’s major economies to cease their “fossil fuel addiction,” phase out coal use, and increase investment in renewable energy sources.
The fossil fuel industry “is killing us,” he added.
Four pressing problems were covered during the informal discussions: Loss and damage, adaptation, climate finance, and emissions reduction.