3 December, 2015 Paris
Loss and damage a key issues for developed countries during the climate conference negotiations. It is crucial for Least Developed Countries which are suffering the effects of climate change although being the ‘Least Responsible Countries’, that the Warsaw Mechanism be anchored in the Paris Agreement to reflect this, says LDC Watch, a global platform for civil society in LDCs.
Speaking at a press conference in Paris today, Prerna Bomzan from LDC Watch in Nepal said, “Being home to over 2000 glacial lakes, glacial melting and the resultant glacial lake outburst floods is always an imminent threat hanging over Nepal. We had one in 2012 and a recent one in June, which adds to the country’s already existing development challenges. We face both economic and socio-cultural losses, which are simply irreversible. Loss and Damage must therefore be anchored in the new agreement”.
LDC Watch said that as increasingly violent weather patterns are damaging the lives and livelihoods of people in LDCs, the mechanism for loss and damage will ensure that reparations are paid to the people and communities who are unjustifiably bearing the brunt of climate change.
This is particularly crucial as there are insufficient resources for LDCs to take the steps needed to adapt and in many cases, it is too late. The International Mechanism for Loss and Damage hammered out in Warsaw should now be developed as a mechanism that is operational at the earliest time possible. It should fully address permanent losses and climate-induced displacement, which is creating millions of migrants.
Daphne Davies
LDC News Service
LDC Watch is a steering committee member of the Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice (DCJ) which held the press conference focusing on voices from the frontlines of climate change. For further information and to see the official Media Release, please visit the following webpage
