UN Climate Conference Agrees on 'Loss and Damage' Fund to Compensate Developing Countries for Climate Disasters (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] A fund proposal to compensate for the "loss and damage" suffered by developing countries experiencing climate disasters has been agreed upon.

Sameh Shoukry, Egypt's Foreign Minister and Chair of the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27), announced on the 20th (local time) that the conference decision, which includes the establishment of a fund for loss and damage compensation, was adopted by consensus among the parties.

The conference, which opened on the 6th and was scheduled to close on the 18th, was dramatically concluded after repeated negotiations until early morning due to differences in positions among parties on contentious issues such as the compensation fund.

The issue of "loss and damage" compensation, adopted as a formal agenda item for the first time this year, emerged as a major point of contention. Developing countries, facing the worst crisis due to frequent abnormal weather caused by climate change, food shortages triggered by the Ukraine war, soaring prices, and a strong dollar, urged immediate financial support for relief from climate disaster damages.

Pakistan, which experienced massive floods submerging one-third of its territory, and island nations in the Caribbean and South Pacific, where rising sea levels have begun to inundate land, demanded compensation for damages.

However, resistance from developed countries, which would have to pay astronomical amounts if compensation were agreed upon, was strong. Meanwhile, proposals were made to include developing countries with high greenhouse gas emissions, such as China, as contributors to the compensation fund.

Therefore, although an agreement was reached, fierce debates are expected in the future regarding the timing of damage compensation and the methods of burden sharing.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.