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Dubai: Nepal has put forth its key climate priorities at the global climate conference COP28 being held at Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

In several platforms, high-level government officials, including Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal stated that developed countries’ pledges and actions do not correspond with each other and they must raise their ambitions and urgently fulfill their commitments.

Nepal also urged the developed countries to scale up climate finance to make up for the $100bn shortfall and double the adaptation finance by 2025, and ensure fair financial arrangements without conditions, constraints, and compliances. 

Nepal, as the chair of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), said the loss and damage fund must be predictable, simplified, and adequate for LDCs and mountainous countries. The Global Stocktake (GST) report must give a clear roadmap to all, and every country must act in solidarity with urgency, demanded Nepal. Nepal also emphasized the necessity of initiating a dialogue on mountain and climate change. In a positive development, COP28 has launched a Loss and Damage Fund. 

Prime Minister Dahal, while addressing the opening of ‘National Statements,’a high-level segment of COP28, demanded a six-point list. He conveyed to the global community that Nepal, despite playing a minimal role in greenhouse gas emissions, is among the most severely affected by climate change.

“I bring a message from 30m Nepalis to this conference, crystal clear: Our mountains endure the torment of escalating temperatures. Their preservation is paramount—save them first!” stressed Dahal. Highlighting the significance of the Himalayas, he said, “These mountains serve as the bedrock of human civilizations, ecosystems, and biodiversity. They provide essential global services to people and the planet, serving as the lifeblood for billions of individuals downstream.”

Dahal reaffirmed Nepal’s dedication to the Paris Agreement, stating, “We are resolutely committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045, five years ahead of the global target.”

A report recently published by the UN Climate Change shows that national climate action plans (known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs) would collectively lower greenhouse gas emissions to two percent below 2019 levels by 2030, while the science is clear that a 43 percent reduction is needed.

The GST must be a catalyst for greater ambition in meeting the Paris Agreement’s goals as nations prepare to submit revised national climate action plans by 2025. It lays out actions on how to accelerate emissions cuts, strengthen resilience to climate impacts, and provide the support and finance needed for the transformation.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres also prominently highlighted Nepal in his addresses.

“Just days ago, I was on the melting ice of Antarctica. Not long before, I witnessed the melting glaciers of Nepal. Despite the vast distance between these two locations, they are united in facing a common crisis,” he said.

Nepal also organized a high-level roundtable discussion, titled ‘Call of mountains: Who saves us from the climate crisis’ chaired by Prime Minister Dahal. 

During his address in the roundtable, he said, “While mountains matter for identity and dignity, ecological and environmental integrity, and humanity, Nepal hosts the highest place in the world, Mt Everest, and is facing the crisis posed by climate change, more and more than others.” 

Dahal further said that climate change impacts, irrespective of color, castes, and social wellbeing of the people, and also the economic condition of the countries, it affects disproportionately.

The roundtable was held with the aim to protect and promote the mountains, mountain civilization, mountain ecosystems, and inhabitants of mountains and seeks to garner collaboration and solidarity to tackle the common challenges posed by climate change in the mountains. 

“Together, we can reach far and accomplish more in our journey of climate justice. It is with absolute confidence that Nepal has hosted this event to pave the way for advanced solutions for the mountains and people living there,” Dahal said. “I strongly recommend the necessity of initiating a dialogue on mountain and climate change to realize the grief of the mountainous communities, find possible solutions, and bring them out of trouble.”

Prime Minister of Andorra Xavier Espot Zamora, UN Secretary General Guterres, and representatives from mountainous countries Kyrgyz Republic, Bhutan, Slovenia, Montenegro including representatives from United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and climate analytics were present.

Guterres expressed his deep concern, stating, “It is profoundly alarming to observe the rapid melting of Nepal’s mountains. Hearing firsthand from local communities about the devastating impact on their lives is deeply distressing.”

“Nepal, along with other vulnerable mountainous nations, is bearing the brunt of a crisis not of their making. Over just 30 years, the country has lost nearly a third of its ice, a direct consequence of greenhouse gas pollution warming our planet. This loss results in swollen lakes and rivers that flood, washing away entire communities,” he emphasized. 

The UN secretary-general warned that without a change in course, catastrophic consequences loom. 

“The glaciers face the risk of complete disappearance, leading to significantly reduced flows in major Himalayan rivers such as the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra, along with the decimation of deltas by encroaching saltwater.”

Highlighting the urgent need for collaboration between governments, countries, and corporations to curb emissions, Guterres stressed the importance of protecting everyone on Earth with an effective early warning system by 2027. He singled out Nepal as a crucial candidate for implementing such a system, stating, “The mountains are signaling a distress call. COP28 must respond with a rescue plan. Let us collectively devote our efforts to ensure that actionable steps emerge from the COP.”

Prime Minister Dahal expressed his satisfaction following Guterres’ mention of Nepal during the high-level meetings. “In his opening speech, Guterres highlighted Nepal and Antarctica, which brings us immense joy,” he remarked.

Speaking at the Nepal Pavilion in COP28, Dahal emphasized that the concerns and priorities of Nepal and other mountainous nations have now become integral to global agendas.

Dahal urged the Nepali delegation to actively engage in bilateral and multilateral discussions, as well as sideline meetings throughout the conference, stressing their paramount importance.

He also underlined the role of Nepali youths in addressing the climate crisis. “Our young generation possesses significant potential and should assertively advocate for climate justice.”

Nepal has been organizing various events at its pavilion including ‘Financing Nepal’s NDC implementation plan’, ‘Putting health at center of climate action’, and ‘L&D and resilient recovery: What Nepal needs’ among others. Nepalis participating at COP28 have also been actively engaged at the sideline events organized by pavilions of other countries and organizations.

Nepal’s six-point demand at COP28

• Developed countries’ pledges and actions do not correspond with each other. They must raise their ambitions and fulfill their commitments urgently.
• They must scale up climate finance to make up for the $100bn shortfall and double the adaptation finance by 2025, and ensure fair financial arrangements without conditions, constraints, and compliances.
• We demand grants as our justice to address this crisis.  
• The loss and damage Fund must be predictable, simplified, and adequate for LDCs and mountainous countries.
• The GST report must give a clear roadmap to all, and we must act in solidarity with urgency.
• The necessity of initiating a dialogue on mountain and climate change.

Climate action gains momentum, but falls short of critical targets

Businesses, investors, cities, states, and regions are increasingly taking action on climate change, yet the pace and scale of these efforts fall short of what’s necessary to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, as highlighted in the 2023 edition of the Yearbook of Global Climate Action released during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28).

“Acceleration of climate action is imperative across the board. Comprehensive transformation of systems, encompassing energy, transportation, our interaction with nature, and societal structures, is crucial to swiftly curbing emissions and fostering resilience,” said Simon Stiell, the executive secretary of UN Climate Change. “Enhanced collaboration between Parties and non-Party stakeholders presents an opportunity for significant advancements towards our shared climate objectives.”

The 2023 Yearbook, the seventh installment in the series, has presented an overview of the progress, trends, and challenges pertaining to tangible climate action undertaken by non-party stakeholders.

The report has highlighted that the Global Climate Action Portal—a platform monitoring worldwide climate initiatives—now boasts over 32,000 registered participants, signifying a six percent increase from the 2022 figures and nearly sixfold growth since 2015. However, gaps persist, both in terms of broadening the geographical coverage and scope of climate action within the portal itself, and in the diversity of solutions pursued by non-party stakeholders.

“Efficient implementation, aligned with achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, stands as our collective objective, guided by the principles of climate justice. The global stocktake presents an opportunity for united progress,” the book includes.

Key messages

• Climate action needs to align with the goal of keeping the 1.5 degrees Celsius climate-resilient world within reach.
• The opportunities to accelerate climate action exist, but need to be scaled up.
• Non-party stakeholders are key partners in ramping up climate action and ambition.
• Credibility of action and commitments of non-party stakeholders need to be systematically ensured.
• International cooperation across sectors and actors—guided by the principle of climate justice—is instrumental in systems-transformation.
• Climate action should not be siloed.
• Fair finance flows are needed now.

USAID in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Population has launched the Global Health Security Program, a strategic partnership to strengthen Nepal’s capacity to prevent, detect, and rapidly respond to emerging infectious diseases. The program will be implemented through one health, a collaborative trans-disciplinary approach that recognizes the interdependence among the health ecosystem, wildlife and domestic animals, and humans.   

This partnership will advance US efforts to strengthen technical capacities in 50 countries by 2025 as part of the Biden Administration’s goal to strengthen health security and pandemic preparedness globally, USAID said in a press statement. The Covid-19 pandemic was a strong reminder of the harm that an emerging zoonotic pathogen can have on human health and global economies, the statement says, the pandemic also showed us where and how our global health systems need to improve to better identify and contain health threats and fully realize global health security.

Speaking at the launch event in Kathmandu, USAID’s Assistant Administrator for Bureau of Asia, Michael Schiffer said, “This program marks a significant step forward in ensuring the health and security of the Nepali population and reflects USAID’s ongoing commitment to global health and pandemic preparedness.” 

Similarly, USAID and the Government of Nepal jointly launched a new activity—Feed the Future Nepal USAID Agricultural Inputs. With up to $24.5m in funding, this activity will work to streamline access to agricultural inputs and contribute to the overall agricultural development of the country.  The five-year activity will focus on four critical agricultural inputs—seed, fertilizer, irrigation, and agricultural mechanization—in 16 districts from the Sudurpaschim, Karnali, Lumbini, Bagmati, and Madhes provinces.

Dubai: In a significant development, the COP28 climate conference formally launched on Thursday a ‘loss and damage’ fund long sought by vulnerable countries highly affected  by disasters caused by global warming. Mainly, Least Developed Countries (LDCs) were demanding to operate the fund as soon as possible. 

“We have delivered history today,” the UAE’s COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber told delegates. He also pledged $100m to the fund. Germany also committed $100m to the loss and damage fund. After years of dithering, wealthy nations finally backed the fund in a landmark agreement at the COP27 summit held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, last year. “This sends a positive signal of momentum to the world and to our work,” Jaber said.

He said it was “the first time a decision has been adopted on day one of any COP and the speed in which we have done so is also unique, phenomenal and historic.” “This is evidence that we can deliver. COP28 can and will deliver,” he added. The two-week-long climate conference is being held at a pivotal moment, with emissions still climbing, and the UN warning that this year is likely to be the hottest in human history. 

Nepal’s Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has already arrived in Dubai and is scheduled to address the conference on Dec 2. Dahal is expected to urge the international community to pay serious attention to fast-melting snows in the Himalayas and early opernationazation of loss and damage fund. 

Scientists say the world is off-track, and the nearly 200 nations gathering for COP28 must commit to accelerating climate action or risk the worst impacts of a warming planet.  UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said leaders should aim for a complete ‘phaseout’ of fossil fuels, a proposal opposed by some powerful nations that has dogged past negotiations.

Before flying to Dubai, the UN boss told AFP that he was “strongly in favor of language that includes (a) phaseout, even with a reasonable time framework.” A central focus of the climate conference will be a stocktake of the world’s limited progress on curbing global warming, which requires an official response at these talks.

During the conference’s inaugural session, Simon Stiell, the executive secretary of COP28, expressed that humanity’s actions towards climate change have been incremental. “We are progressing too slowly from an unstable world lacking resilience towards formulating optimal responses to the complex challenges we are encountering,” he said. 

Stiell stressed the urgency: “We must hasten climate action; this year stands as the hottest ever for humanity.”

This year has witnessed several alarming records being shattered. From April to October, the oceans experienced record-high monthly temperatures, while July likely marked the hottest month on land in the last 120,000 years, as reported by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

The WMO, in its latest announcement, deemed it ‘virtually certain’ that 2023 will be recorded as the hottest year globally. Secretary-General Prof Petteri Taalas highlighted an array of broken records associated with extreme weather events, characterizing the situation as a ‘cacophony of broken records’.

The release of the provisional findings by the global agency has been timed to inform discussions at COP28. The report urgently calls upon global leaders to take immediate action to curb fossil fuel emissions, the primary contributor to the escalating climate crisis.

According to data available until Oct 2023, global temperature has surpassed the pre-industrial average by 1.4°C, exceeding the previous hottest years of 2020 and 2016. The WMO stated that the final two months are unlikely to alter this outcome.

Secretary Stiell reiterated, “Failure to signify the conclusive decline of the fossil fuel era would equate to welcoming our own decline. This is a cost we choose to pay with people’s lives.”

A recent report by the United Nations estimates that up to $387bn will be needed annually if developing countries are to adapt to climate-driven changes. The fund will be hosted by the World Bank for the next four years and the plan is to launch it by 2024. A developing country representative will get a seat on its board.

Next 2-year vision of COP

• In 2024, nations are expected to submit their initial Biennial Transparency Reports.
• COP29 aims to reach an agreement on financing this substantial transition, establishing the new Finance Goal.
• At the outset of 2025, countries are mandated to present updated Nationally Determined Contributions.
• By the start of COP30, all commitments regarding finance, adaptation, and mitigation must align with the target of limiting global warming to a 1.5-degree Celsius world.

The Nepali Embassy in Moscow has confirmed the death of three Nepalis associated with the Russian Army. Their deaths reportedly occurred during the war with Ukraine. According to officials, they lost their lives on Nov 15.

Government agencies are collaborating with the Russian army to get more information about this incident. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) had, on Aug 1, responded to reports of Nepalis joining the Russian Army after videos started circulating on various social media platforms like Telegram, Twitter, TikTok, and Facebook, showing Nepalis enlisting in the Russian army. In response to these developments, the ministry had issued a warning, underscoring the potential dangers and challenges these individuals might encounter by engaging in such activities.

The ministry had cautioned citizens to be vigilant and mindful of the risks associated with participating in foreign military endeavors, highlighting the complexities that could arise during potential rescue operations in unforeseen circumstances.

Historically, Nepal has permitted citizens to join the national armies of certain friendly countries as “established agreements”, but there is no policy allowing Nepali citizens to enlist in other foreign armies. MoFA said, “The Government of Nepal does not have a policy in place to authorize Nepali citizens to join foreign armies, except in cases where Nepali citizens are recruited into the national armies of some friendly countries based on established agreements.” Moreover, citizens are strongly discouraged from seeking employment in security-related roles in conflict-ridden nations.

On Oct 28, The New York Times reported that Nepalis are associated with both the Russian and Ukrainian sides of the conflict.