Developed world taken to task over unkept climate pledges by President Ali

President Irfaan Ali mounted the world stage at the United Nations 26 th  Conference of Parties on
Climate Change (COP26) on Tuesday to take the developed world to task over how failure to
honour their pledges threaten the very fate of human civilisation.
Ali, currently in Glasgow, Scotland, asserted that the climate crisis has given the world an
ultimatum. “The fate of civilisation resides in the decisions we make here in Glasgow… Either
we take immediate and drastic action or subject ourselves to an infernal global disaster,” he said.
President Ali noting that the world is still far behind in its quest to keep the global temperate rise
below 1.5 degrees Celsius, Dr. Ali said that any indifference and inaction will cost the planet.
Though everyone will be affected, the President stressed that the most profound and devastating
impacts will be on the poorest and vulnerable countries. “Climate change affects us all. Rich,
poor, developed and developing states. But its effects are more severe on the poorest and most
vulnerable, especially small island developing states, and low-lying coastal states. For us, it is a
question of survival,” he explained.
He noted that these countries happen to be among the many countries which have had little
impact on the increase in global temperatures, relative to large polluters such as the United States
and China.
GUYANA’S DEMANDS
Ali urged that the climate summit be used to change the world’s trajectory, and identified three
areas in which immediate action is necessary. “First, we must set more ambitious goals to reduce
emissions, and we must honour to the letter, those ambitions,” Ali noted. Although every country
has a part to play, it is the world’s foremost polluters, the President explained, that are obligated
to institute deeper cuts. “Second, the pledge of US$100 billion per annum made one decade ago
to support climate action must be met,” he said
The president went on to note that dishonored pledges are a recipe for disaster. “Third, forests
constitute a powerful arsenal in the fight against climate change. Forest rich countries must be
provided with the incentives necessary to keep their forests intact and to reduce deforestation and
forest degradation,” he declared. The President pointed out that deforestation contributes to 16
per cent annual global emissions, and on that basis, urged that the rules for carbon markets and
REDD+ be finalised, to recognise the true value of tropical forest, and the climate services they
provide.
“My country, Guyana, is already playing its part in addressing climate change, and we’ll
continue to do so. We’ll maintain our forests almost the size of England and Scotland combined,
storing 20 gigatons of carbon as a global asset. We’ll work with local communities in
conserving, protecting and sustainably managing our forest, biodiversity and freshwater
supplies,” he said.
He informed the summit of Guyana’s plan to implement a cleaner and diverse energy mix,
targeting 70 per cent reduction in electricity related emissions by 2030.

The summit was also told of Guyana’s plan to invest in low carbon opportunities for jobs,
ecosystem services and social inclusion through the expanded low carbon development strategy.
GUYANA’S PARTNERS
Ali pointed out the international partner with which it stands in solidarity on climate matters.
“We support the position of Caricom (Caribbean Community) and are aligned with the Alliance
of Small Island States (AOSIS), the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States
(CELAC), the Leticia pact, the Dhaka-Glasgow declaration, and the Glasgow leaders’
declaration on forest and land use, among others,” the president explained.
In the lead-up to COP26, Guyana has held engagements with these organisations so more
countries could hold a unified front. “Though we recently became an oil producer, we support
the removal of subsidies from fossil fuel production and advocate a strong global carbon price.
Let future generations say, when it mattered the most, we made a difference,” he said.
He noted further that the world is at a historic moment, and that it must not allow history to judge
it as only having counted its losses. He added that Guyana is prepared to work with the
international community for collective action.