COP28 in Dubai - Agreement marking the beginning of the end for fossil fuels (13.12.2023)
Agreement between the signatories of the Paris Agreement marking the beginning of the end for fossil fuels at COP28 in Dubai.
On Wednesday 13 December 2023, the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (Conference of the Parties, COP28), hosted by the United Arab Emirates in Dubai, ended with a very encouraging agreement that includes the commitment and the vast majority of the elements needed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, in line with the recommendations of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Together with the delegations of the 195 co-signatory countries, the Luxembourg delegation, chaired by the Ministry for the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, adopted a Global Stocktake agreement which, for the first time, brings the whole world together around a clear language concerning the exit from fossil fuels, global targets for reducing CO2 emissions, the transition to renewable energies, adaptation to climate change and financing issues in the countries most exposed to these changes. This historic agreement was made possible by the determination and unity of the European Union delegation, led by the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council and the Commission, and by close coordination with its allies. Serge Wilmes emphasised: «This is a historic step forward. It is the first time that the international community has recognised the premise of the Paris climate agreement in its exact terms: 1.5 degrees of warming and carbon neutrality by 2050!»
In addition to concrete references to phasing out fossil fuels, tripling renewable energies and doubling energy efficiency, one of the most notable advances in the text concerns the follow-up to the first global assessment under the Paris Agreement.
In this context, the agreement explicitly sets out the decarbonisation path prescribed by the IPCC to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius:
- a 43% reduction in overall emissions by 2030,
- a reduction of 60% until 2040, and
- carbon neutrality by 2050.
In line with these now official objectives, the need to finance the transition, including the new quantified global objective, has been confirmed. The Member States agreed on the modalities for setting the new target at the next COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan. In addition, the new Loss and Damage Fund was operationalised at COP28, and has received almost €700 million in donations since the start of the conference.
The UAE President of COP28, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, spoke in his final speech of a «historic UAE (United Arab Emirates) consensus», noting that any agreement is only as good as its implementation, and looking ahead to what will follow on a global scale after the COP in Dubai.
In parallel with the negotiation process for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Luxembourg delegation also met a number of its international partners through bilateral exchanges, provided support to the young Luxembourg participants and followed a sustained speaking programme in the representative pavilion shared by the Benelux countries and the European Investment Bank (EIB).