UNITED NATIONS, Sep 26 (APP): With global sea level rising faster than at any time over the last 3,000 years, UN Member States met Wednesday to examine how best to address this existential threat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The situation is critical, said UN General Assembly President Philemon Yang, who convened the high-level meeting which included a plenary session and panel discussions, with more than 100 speakers participating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yang said it is estimated that sea levels will rise by 20 centimetres between 2020 and 2050, and up to 1.2 billion people could be forcibly displaced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor those on the front lines, the impacts of rising seas threaten livelihoods, inflict damage to settlements and critical infrastructure, and can in its most dramatic manifestations force the displacement of entire island populations and coastal communities,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The president urged countries to work together to build resilience, tackle disaster vulnerability, ensure the development and implementation of climate adaptation strategies, and improve coastal management practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAbove all, we must stop the global warming that is fuelling sea level rise by recommitting to our goal of limiting temperature rise to no more than 1.5 degrees,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed the need for \u201cdrastic action\u201d \u2013 both to reduce emissions to limit sea level rise and to save lives. He said everyone, everywhere must be protected by early warning systems by 2027, in line with a UN initiative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, countries must deliver new climate action plans that align with the 1.5\u00b0C goal, cover all sectors of the economy, and provide a fast track to phasing out fossil fuels. G20 nations \u2013 responsible for roughly 80 per cent of global emissions \u2013 must take the lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMoney is indispensable. We need a strong finance outcome at COP29 this year \u2013 including on new and innovative sources of capital,\u201d he said, referring to the UN climate change conference in Azerbaijan in November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Secretary-General also called for significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund that assists developing nations, and for richer countries to double adaptation finance to at least $40 billion annually by 2025. Furthermore, multilateral development banks must be reformed to deliver more affordable finance to developing countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Former General Assembly President Dennis Francis commended UN Member States for taking decisive action on the issue of sea level rise. He said the meeting marks the starting point towards \u201can ambitious declaration\u201d by the General Assembly in September 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe declaration is an opportunity to secure prosperity, dignity and rights of all affected countries and communities,\u201d he continued. \u201cThrough the declaration, we must reaffirm that sovereignty and statehood are inalienable rights, and they are enduring and permanent, notwithstanding any circumstances of sea level rise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Francis called for greater support for climate adaptation in the most vulnerable communities as \u201cclimate financing is not sufficiently reaching the local level and should not saddle countries suffering from repeat disasters with more and more debt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sea level rise poses an existential threat to the economies, culture, heritage and land of small island developing countries, said the Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Feleti Teo. Many will lose considerable territory, running the risk of becoming largely inhabitable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He spoke of impacts such as saltwater permeating aquifers that provide drinking water, and higher tides and intensifying storms that devastate villages and fields. Additionally, flooding increases soil salinity, thus reducing crop yields and weakening trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur people will be unable to exist on the islands and shore they have called home for generations. Livelihoods are destroyed, families gradually move, community cohesion is tested, heritage is lost, and eventually, the very fabric of our nations become increasingly threatened,\u201d Mr. Teo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor many of us, these are the hard realities we experience today, not the projections of a coming future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The European Union (EU) Climate Action Commissioner, Wopke Hoekstra, focused on the two \u201ctruly crucial elements\u201d of mitigation and building resilience through adaptation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regarding mitigation, he said \u201cthere is no time to bury our heads in the sand a moment longer\u201d and it is essential that countries keep working towards the goal of net-zero emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hoekstra said the EU will uphold the commitment to reach climate neutrality by 2050. The objective is part of its climate law \u201cand we are well on our way to implementing the policies needed to achieve that transition in a way that is both fair and just and enables clean economic growth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He stressed, however, that curbing emissions \u201cwill not be enough\u201d in the face of rising climate risks, hence the need to step up resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Commissioner also assured vulnerable communities that \u201cthe EU is with you in this struggle\u201d. He said the bloc \u201cwill continue to fight for greater ambition on mitigation, and to support as much as we can with adaptation and the measures that we have to take in the domain of loss and damage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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