Africa

Guinea midfielder Naby Keita will leave Werder Bremen to join Hungarian club Ferencvaros on loan in January.

Israel not providing a just and fair peace plan will inevitably lead to future conflicts with more deaths, injuries, displacements and destruction. Credit: UNRWA

By Joseph Chamie
PORTLAND, USA, Dec 10 2024 (IPS)

After the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, Israel retaliated with a war in Gaza involving bombings, shootings and blockades but with no explicit plan for achieving peace with the Palestinians.

It remains unclear what the Israeli government is trying to achieve with its continuing war in Gaza and what its postwar plan is. While Israeli leaders have vowed to maintain security control in Gaza after the war, they have not clearly stated what that control might entail.

A former Israeli defense minister said that Israel’s government with the support of far-right politicians was aiming to occupy, annex and ethnically cleanse Gaza and build Israeli settlements there. He accused the Israeli government of committing war crimes and ethnic cleansing in Gaza.

It remains unclear what the Israeli government is trying to achieve with its continuing war in Gaza and what its postwar plan is. While Israeli leaders have vowed to maintain security control in Gaza after the war, they have not clearly stated what that control might entail

Some Israeli government ministers and far-right lawmakers also said that their military control over Gaza should pave the way for renewed Jewish settlement. They called for Arab residents to leave Gaza so that Jewish Israelis can populate the coastal strip.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister and his former defense chief for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict. The ICC judges said there were reasonable grounds to believe that those two Israeli officials were criminally responsible for acts including murder, persecution and starvation as a weapon of war as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Gaza.

Furthermore, Amnesty International recently issued a landmark report indicating that it had gathered sufficient evidence to conclude that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.

The report found that during its military offensive following the Hamas-led attacks on 7 October 2023, Israel had unleashed “hell and destruction” on Palestinians in Gaza brazenly, continuously and with total impunity, and obstructed humanitarian aid reaching the Palestinian population. Amnesty International said that month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity.

Israel’s actions in Gaza, the ICJ’s decisions and Amnesty International’s recent report are contributing to serious political problems and demonstrations worldwide. Protests and progressive activism opposing Israel’s actions, which are viewed as having created a humanitarian disaster in Gaza, have taken place across many countries and regions.

Various peace proposals have been offered to resolve the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict (Table 1).

 

 

The proposal widely supported by most governments, international agencies and non-governmental organizations is the two-state solution. That proposal recommends establishing an independent state for Palestinians alongside that of Israel with the two states existing peacefully within recognized borders and security ensured for both nations.

The two-state solution has been the goal of the international community for decades, dating back to the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan. Many countries, including China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, believe that the creation of a Palestinian state with guarantees for Israel’s security is the only way to finally bring peace and stability to the Middle East.

In a new resolution passed by a 157-8 vote on 3 December, the UN General Assembly expressed “unwavering support, in accordance with international law, for the two-state solution of Israel and Palestine.” The resolution also called on Israel to withdraw from the occupied Palestinian territories and pushed for the creation of a Palestinian state, convening an international conference in June to try to jumpstart a two-state solution.

Although it is not a member state of the United Nations, the State of Palestine has been officially recognized as a sovereign state by 146 countries, or 75 percent of the United Nations member states. Those countries represent nearly 90 percent of the world’s population.

The Israeli government as well as the Knesset, have rejected the two-state solution. However, they have not offered an alternative solution to resolve the conflict with the Palestinians.

The Israeli government has stated that it will not compromise on full Israeli security control over all the territory west of Jordan. In addition, despite the ICJ decision mandating Israel to end its occupation and dismantle its unlawful settlements, Israel is continuing with its expansion of Israeli settlements and apartheid in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Some have concluded that the two-state solution is no longer an option primarily due to today’s realities. Approximately 750,000 Israelis, or about 10 percent of Israel’s Jewish population, are currently residing in settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

As a result of those demographic realities, the de facto option to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict appears to be the one-state solution.

The one-state solution with its total population of approximately 15.5 million would provide equal rights for all its citizens, irrespective of their religious affiliation. The one-state would be similar to other democracies where equal rights and opportunities are provided to all citizens of every religious group.

Israel, however, rejects the one-state solution. It sees a single state with equal rights for all its citizens of the various religious groups would undermine the Jewish character of Israel. Whereas the current proportion Jewish of the Israeli population is about 77 percent, the Jewish proportion in the larger one-state would be approximately 50 percent.

Other proposals that have been offered to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict include: a confederation of Israel, Jordan and Palestine; a federation of smaller Palestinian provinces or cantons; autonomy-plus for the Palestinians; and the establishment of a Jewish Greater Israel.

Many Israelis of the religious far right are seeking the establishment of a Jewish Greater Israel. Their desired nation includes the occupied Palestinian territories and its population would have a large Jewish majority. Due to the existing demographics, a Jewish Greater Israel would necessarily involve the departure, expulsion or transfer of very large numbers of the non-Jewish population currently residing in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The serious human consequences of the Israel-Gaza wars continue to rise and are being regularly updated. The current reported levels of mortality, injuries, displacement and destruction provide an intelligible picture of the wars’ consequences on casualties, living conditions and the wellbeing of the populations in Gaza, Israel, Lebanon and elsewhere.

Although the true mortality figure is estimated to be many times larger, the total number of reported deaths of Israelis, Lebanese, Palestinians and others resulting from the Israel-Gaza war during the period from 7 October 2023 to 7 December 2024 is approximately 52,000.

The overwhelming majority of those reported deaths, 88 percent, were to Palestinians. Also, a large majority of those deaths, nearly 70 percent, were women and children. The Palestinian deaths were followed by Lebanese at 8 percent, Israelis at 3 percent and others, such as journalists and media workers, at 1 percent (Figure 1).

 

Source: Israeli Government, Ministries of Health of Gaza and Lebanon and UNOCHA.

 

A similar pattern is observed with respect to the numbers of reported injuries. Although the true figure of injuries will certainly be considerably larger, the total number of reported injuries is approximately 140,000. Again, the large majority of the reported injuries, about 81 percent, were to Palestinians with many being children. The Palestinians were followed by Lebanese at 12 percent, Israelis at 6 percent and others at 1 percent (Figure 2).

 

Source: Israeli Government, Ministries of Health of Gaza and Lebanon and UNOCHA.

 

The Gaza-Israel war was also responsible for the displacement of more than 3 million people. Approximately 60 percent of those displaced were Palestinians, followed by Lebanese at 38 percent and Israel at 3 percent.

Beyond the displacement of people from their homes, Israel’s bombings have damaged or destroyed approximately two-thirds of the buildings in Gaza and about 38 percent of the buildings in villages in southern Lebanon as well scores of buildings in Beirut and Baalbek. In addition, the Hezbollah rocket attacks in northern Israel have damaged or destroyed about 9,000 buildings and 350 agricultural sites.

In sum, it is clear that over the past fourteen months, the conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon, Israel and elsewhere have resulted in large numbers of deaths, injuries and displacements as well as extensive destruction of buildings and community infrastructure, notably impacting the Palestinian population in Gaza.

The decisions of ICJ concerning Israel’s crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict and the findings of Amnesty International’s report stating that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in Gaza constitute an indisputable indictment of Israel’s military actions in Gaza. Simply rejecting the ICJ’s decisions and denying the findings of Amnesty International will not diminish that momentous indictment.

It is also clear that to achieve a lasting peace with the Palestinians, Israel needs to move beyond rejecting the various peace proposals. The Israeli government needs to put forth an explicit peace proposal indicating how it envisions resolving the decades-old conflict with the Palestinians. Israel not providing a just and fair peace plan will inevitably lead to future conflicts with more deaths, injuries, displacements and destruction.

 

Joseph Chamie is a consulting demographer, a former director of the United Nations Population Division and author of numerous publications on population issues, including his recent book, “Population Levels, Trends, and Differentials”.

 

Global Youth Voices (GYV) delegates at the 10th Conference of Parties (COP10) in Panama, February 2024. Credit: GYV
 
Human Rights Day is commemorated every year on 10 December, the day in 1948 the UN General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

By Yodhim Dela Rosa and Rajika Mahajan
NEW YORK, Dec 10 2024 (IPS)

As the world commemorates UN Human Rights Day December 10, with the theme, “Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now,” it’s time to ask: Are we truly listening to what the youth envision for their present and future?

This year’s theme strikes a chord with young people globally, highlighting a pressing issue that threatens them now and their future – tobacco addiction.

Globally, about 37 million adolescents aged 13-15 years are hooked to tobacco use. They are ensnared through aggressive and deceptive marketing tactics of a powerful, profit-driven and harmful industry – the tobacco and its related industries. Beyond consumption, over a million children are also trapped in producing tobacco under harsh and exploitative conditions.

Protect Our Right, Our Future – Youth’s Call to Action

Today’s youth are a premium market targeted by tobacco and related industries, with manipulative strategies designed to lure them into life-long addiction. From digital media marketing to seemingly innovative products like biodegradable filters or vaping devices, the industry ensures its grip on the next generation.

But young people everywhere are speaking out, demanding an end to these harmful practices. The Global Youth Voices, a movement that represents youth coalitions and organizations around the world, has made their stance clear.

In October 2023, they appealed to governments to shield them from the manipulative practices of tobacco and its related industries. Through a declaration this May, they demanded justice and restitution for the harm inflicted and ongoing threats to their health and future.

Recently, in a powerful open letter to the UN Secretary-General, the youth called on the General Assembly to prioritize the well-being of young people and resist the tobacco industry’s influence. Their call is loud and clear: they want stronger regulation of tobacco promotions on all platforms, including entertainment and social media, accountability for environmental pollution– particularly that caused by tobacco plastic waste– and prevention of new addictive products being marketed as disguised innovation.

Tobacco’s Harms Globally

The tobacco industry’s adverse impact on health, the environment, and the economy is deeply troubling. It harms individuals, communities, and the planet while violating fundamental human rights.

Annually, tobacco claims more than 8 million lives, with 22,000 deaths every single day. Smoking is a leading driver of cardiovascular diseases, respiratory illnesses, and over 20 types of cancer, burdening healthcare systems and families worldwide.

Beyond health, the global economy shoulders a staggering $1.4 trillion annual loss from tobacco-related costs, ranging from medical expenses to lost productivity. Tobacco is also a major environmental offender, polluting ecosystems with 4.5 trillion cigarette butts discarded yearly, making them the most littered plastic item in the world.

These toxic, non-biodegradable wastes infiltrate our waterways and soil, causing annual marine ecosystem losses estimated at $20 billion. The magnitude of these harms highlights the urgent need to hold the tobacco industry accountable—not only to protect the health, economy, and environment of our current generation but also to safeguard the well-being of future generations.

For decades, the tobacco industry has evaded accountability for the extensive harms it causes. While the global treaty, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) offers tools for regulation, implementation remains lacking and inconsistent. Many governments around the world have failed to act cohesively against tobacco industry interference.

Right Now: Making Tobacco Pay

A civil society report surveying 90 countries, the 2023 Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index, illustrates the industry’s evasion tactics through its so-called corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

These programs—often framed as philanthropic efforts—are used to repair the industry’s tarnished reputation, foster goodwill, and distract from its role as a driver of death and environmental harm. By presenting itself as a “responsible corporate citizen,” the tobacco industry seeks to escape financial liabilities while influencing policymakers and the public.

This Human Rights Day, let us remember that our rights and our children’s rights to health, a clean environment, and a life free from preventable harm are non-negotiable. The fight against tobacco is a fight for justice, equity, and sustainability.

Upholding and protecting human rights is a collective responsibility. Governments, policymakers, and advocates alike must act decisively and cohesively to hold the industry liable for both human and planetary damages.

A comprehensive solution to curbing the tobacco industry’s undue interference lies in fully implementing the WHO FCTC Article 5.3 recommendations such as, denormalizing and banning tobacco-related charity, requiring greater transparency for increased accountability, removing incentives to the tobacco industry, and providing a firewall between government officials from the industry so they can be freed-up to protect their citizens.

The industry must be held liable for the harm it causes to both human health and the environment. Governments should make the industry pay by adopting the “polluter pays” principle. The industry must bear the financial burden of cleaning up its waste and addressing its environmental damage. Because of the irreconcilable difference between profit and public health, the industry must be excluded from the policy table.

We cannot afford to let the industry dictate the terms of our health, our rights, or our future.

The time to act is now.

Yodhim Dela Rosa is the Global Research Coordinator, and Rajika Mahajan is the Communications Officer at the Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control (GGTC).

GGTC works closely with governments and advocates worldwide to address the most significant challenge in tobacco control implementation: tobacco industry interference.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Charles Onana said to suggest the killings were planned was "one of the biggest scams" of the last century.

A house damaged due to coastal erosion caused by rising sea levels in Tuvalu. Credit Hettie Sem/Pacific Community

By Catherine Wilson
SYDNEY, Dec 10 2024 (IPS)

Advancing development of the new Climate Loss and Damage Fund was a key call by Pacific Island nations at the COP29 United Nations Climate Change Conference being held in Azerbaijan in November. For Pacific Island Countries and Territories, the fund represents a critical step towards addressing what they consider a gross climate injustice: despite contributing less than 0.03 percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, they bear the brunt of climate change’s devastating impacts.

The concept of climate finance as a “polluter pays” issue is grounded in the principle that those who have historically contributed the most to greenhouse gas emissions should be financing the developing world’s ability to deal with its impacts and scale climate action.

Fifteen years after the Paris Agreement’s promises, the Pacific region has only accessed 0.22 percent of global climate funds, severely impeding the region’s ability to adapt to escalating climate impacts.

“Access to funding is very limited to date,” Coral Pasisi, Pacific Community’s Director of Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability, Niue, told IPS. “There are structural impediments to why international funds are not financing adaptation and mitigation in the Pacific at the rate they need. Most global funds do not take account of the special circumstances of SIDS—including their extreme exposure to disasters, remoteness, lack of capacity and small population sizes. And there is a direct correlation between the lack of access to climate finance for resilience and adaptation measures and the mounting costs of loss and damage for the Pacific region.”

Access to climate-related international finance has been and remains a significant challenge for Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The global multilateral climate financing architecture is administratively complex, requiring considerable capacity to access and taking too long—on average three years for project development to approval. Through pooling resources and frontloading, the regional organization, the Pacific Community, is a vital partner in raising the chances of funding success for some of the world’s smallest nations.

According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), loss and damage are ‘the negative impacts of climate change that occur after all reasonable adaptation and mitigation measures have been implemented’. These impacts can be economic, such as damage to infrastructure, destruction of homes, reduced agricultural yields, and other financial losses. They can also be non-economic, such as loss of culturally important areas, traditional knowledge, loss of life and grief. It is important to note that most often, loss and damage have both non-economic and economic implications. When communities and nations face overwhelming challenges and lack sufficient financial resources to address these impacts, they become increasingly vulnerable. This exacerbates loss and damage, undermining recovery and resilience efforts.

With the global temperature rise on course to exceed the 1.5-degree Celsius safety threshold in the 2030s, warns the IPCC, losses inflicted by climate extremes are set to escalate and will be beyond the economic resources of Pacific Island states. Even though there are six Pacific Island nations among the 20 most disaster-prone countries in the world. In 2019, disasters were costing the region USD 1.07 billion per year, with 49 percent of losses due to cyclones and 20 percent due to droughts, reports the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). And this century, annual average losses could amount to 20 percent of GDP in Vanuatu and 18.2 percent in Tonga.

Recent disasters include the violent eruption of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano in the Polynesian nation of Tonga in 2022. It affected 85 percent of the population of about 107,000 people, destroyed infrastructure, agriculture and tourism, and left a damage bill of USD 125 million.

Extreme rainfall and floods caused months of agricultural losses in Siai Village, Oro Province, Papua New Guinea, in 2012. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPS

The following year, Vanuatu was hit by two cyclones, Judy and Kevin, plus a 6.5-magnitude earthquake in March. Again, more than 80 percent of people were affected, crops were lost, tourists fled and the cost of damages amounted to 40 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic |Product (GDP). Meanwhile, in Fiji, villagers on Vanua Levu Island have witnessed higher sea tides accelerate coastal erosion in the past 18 years and communities have been forced to relocate inland due to excessive flooding.

Climate losses in the region are related to the vulnerability of populations. Ninety percent of Pacific Islanders live within 5 kilometres of weather-exposed coastlines and plants in the region that generate 84 percent of total power are exposed to cyclones, reports ESCAP.

“Critical infrastructure, such as schools, roads and hospitals, is one of the areas that has the costliest impacts in terms of economic loss and damage and non-economic implications. This is especially the case where only one main hospital exists, for example; the effects of losing that facility extend well beyond the repair and replacement costs,” said Pasisi.

Non-economic losses are more difficult to quantify. These “are debilitating and often irreversible, including loss of land, cultural sites, burial grounds, traditional knowledge, village displacement, psychological trauma from recurrent disasters, failing human health, coral reef degradation and more,” reports the Vanuatu Government.

Despite their funding needs, Pacific island states face major bureaucratic handicaps in putting together complex international climate funding applications. These include lack of technical expertise, dearth of data and sheer capacity constraints within governments.

Mapping Loss and Damage challenges

In March 2023, the Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu was hit by two cyclones, Judy and Kevin, that affected 80 percent of the population and left a loss and damage bill of USD 433 million. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPS

The new global Loss and Damage Fund was first agreed by world leaders at the COP27 Climate Change Conference in 2022. Its objective is to procure major contributions from industrialized, large carbon-emitting nations and aid vulnerable and developing countries in times of climate-driven crises. It will play a vital role given that a recent study claims that, from 2000-2019, climate extremes cost the world USD 16 million per hour.

Island nations view this initiative as a long-overdue step toward addressing climate injustice. Solomon Islands welcomes the spirit of cooperation and commitment to operationalize the Loss and Damage Fund.

“While we welcome the pledges being made in particular from developed country parties, we need to ensure that these pledges are being delivered,” Dr Melchior Mataki, Deputy Head of the Solomon Islands Delegation to COP28, told media in December 2023.

Progress in operationalizing the fund has been slow, even as the climate crisis accelerates. “The biggest challenge is the time it takes to access funding. Time is not on our side,” said Michelle DeFreese, SPC Loss and Damage Project Coordinator. “Countries have urged for the development of the Fund for decades, but the impact of climate-related loss and damage is already taking a tremendous toll on countries in the Pacific.” She explained that “responding to and preparing for sea level rise is one of the greatest funding needs in the region, particularly for low-lying atoll nations, including Kiribati, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Tuvalu.”

To address this, the Pacific Community has collaborated with the Tuvalu Government to develop advanced physical and computer models demonstrating the impact of a 25–50-centimeter sea level rise on the atoll nation by the end of the century. The information is vital to making the case for the funding needed. From 1993 to 2023, the mean sea level rise in the Pacific was 15 centimetres, far higher than the global mean rise of 9.4 centimetres, reports the UN. And, if the global temperature rises to 1.5–3.0 degrees Celsius, the Pacific Islands could confront a rise of 50–68 centimetres.

Yet, while SIDS are encouraged by the global commitment to the new Loss and Damage Fund, with the secretariat hosted by the World Bank, the details of how it will operate, the criteria for applications and the amount of funds it will offer are still undetermined. Funding promises also fall far short of what is required. At COP28 in December last year, sizeable contributions were committed by nations including Germany, France, Italy and the United Arab Emirates, but the total of USD 700 million stands in contrast to the projected USD 100 billion per annum needed for accelerating climate losses this century.

“The Pacific has championed Loss and Damage since 1991 and will continue to do so. While all countries face climate change impacts, the Pacific and other SIDS have done the least to cause climate change and face disproportionate impacts,” Ronneberg said. “If the world doesn’t reduce emissions to be compatible with the 1.5 degree target, we will face existential threats from climate change loss and damage.”

Recognizing the urgency, the Pacific Community has intensified efforts to help nations develop comprehensive loss and damage strategies. With support from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the organization has launched a project to help Pacific nations develop loss and damage plans and strategies. Denmark has pledged EUR 5 million to support vital research and data collection needed for funding applications.

“The project that the Pacific Community started this year with funding from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to support countries in the development of loss and damage national plans and strategies in parallel with the operationalization of the Fund for responding to loss and damage,” DeFreese explained.

The need for swift and substantial global action has never been greater, as the Pacific continues to face the mounting toll of climate impacts. Without accelerated efforts to operationalize the fund and deliver on pledges, vulnerable nations risk being left unprepared for the challenges ahead.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Khumbu Glacier at the Mt. Everest base camp. Because of rising temperatures, glaciers are melting at a faster rate. Credit: Tanka Dhakal/IPS

By Tanka Dhakal
THE HAGUE, Dec 10 2024 (IPS)

At the International Court of Justice (ICJ), no matter if the country had high Himalayas, was a small island nation or was experiencing armed conflict, they all agreed that the due diligence principle and the obligation of states to prevent harm caused by climate change, especially for high greenhouse gas emitters, were non-negotiable.

On Monday, December 9, 2024, countries including Nepal, Pakistan, Nauru, New Zealand and the State of Palestine presented their cases before the highest court within the United Nations.

Countries within the Hindu Kush Himalaya Region, Nepal and Pakistan, included examples of recent years disasters, including flash floods and their impact on livelihoods, while the small island state of Nauru laid out the toll faced by its people because of rising sea level. The State of Palestine connected its plea to ongoing armed conflict and climate-environmental destruction.

At the request of Vanuatu, the UN General Assembly asked the ICJ to issue an advisory opinion on the obligations of UN member states in preventing climate change and ensuring the protection of the environment for present and future generations. While its advisory opinion will not be enforceable, the court will advise on the legal consequences for member states who have caused significant harm, particularly to small island developing states. So far, more than 70 countries have presented their case before the court.

Indigenous Sherpa women in the Khumbu region of Nepal. These mountain communities are already facing the impact of climate change in the form of low snowfall and glacier melting, which causes floods. Credit: Tanka Dhakal/IPS

Human Rights and Technology Transfer—Nepal

Nepal’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arzu Rana Deuba, stressed climate change-induced disasters were hindering the human rights of people on the front lines and said countries responsible for emissions needed to fulfil their obligations.

“Climate change hinders the realization and enjoyment of human rights, including the right to life, right to food, right to health, right to adequate housing, sanitation and water,” Deuba said. “Moreover, it impacts the rights of women, children and people with disabilities, as well as the cultural rights of minorities and indigenous communities.”

Nepal says many vulnerable states were not able to meet the obligations under international human rights laws, as the actions and emissions arising from beyond their territory also had adverse effects on the human rights of their citizens. The country of mountains, including Mt. Everest, stressed the need for material, technical and financial support from the countries whose historic emissions have caused the crisis of anthropogenic climate change.

“This includes unhindered access to technology and the sharing of meteorological and glacial data,” Deuba said. “Nepal considers that the court’s advisory opinion will contribute to clarifying the law, especially the obligations of the states regarding climate change and the rules governing the consequences of the violation of these obligations.”

Suvanga Parajuli, Under Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nepal, added that the country was facing a gross injustice. “What countries like Nepal are calling for is not mere handouts of charity but compensation for real climate justice,” Parajuli said.

Court Opinion Could Help Avert Catastrophe—Pakistan

Another HKH region country, Pakistan, which faced devastating floods caused by climate change in 2022, stressed the need for support and knowledge sharing. Mansoor Usman Awan, the Attorney General of Pakistan, urged the court to give an opinion that clarifies the legal obligations of states to prevent, avoid, reduce, or mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

“If lives and livelihoods are to be protected, if we want to avoid utter catastrophe, there simply is no time to lose. As has often been said, we are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change, and undoubtedly, we are the last generation that can do something about it.”

Awan continued, “For the human race, ignoring the climate emergency is no longer an option.”

We Are Facing Existential Threat—Nauru

Island country Nauru argues that climate change poses an existential threat to its security and well-being, highlighting the impact of rising sea levels, coastal erosion and drought at the UN court.

The island is a mere 21 km2 (8.1 sq mi), oval-shaped island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean.

Representing Nauru Lionel Rouwen Aingimea, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, emphasized the obligations of states in respect of climate change to be the obligations found in the principles of general international law.

“We urge this court to clarify the scope of the existing obligations of states with respect to climate change,” Aingimea said. “No more, but certainly no less, we seek your affirmation that the law protects the vulnerable and that our fundamental rights under general international law—to exist, to thrive, to safeguard our land—are upheld and respected.”

He urged the court to deliver an advisory opinion that reflects “the urgency, the dignity and the right of all peoples to exist in security.”

Island countries’ vulnerability was central to New Zealand’s arguments. Representing Pacific Island countries, Victoria Hallum, Deputy Secretary Multilateral and Legal Affairs Group at New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs and Trade ministry, emphasized the urgent need to address anthropogenic climate change. It said climate change was the single greatest threat to the Pacific Island regions.

Armed Conflict and Climate Change Connected—Palestine

The State of Palestine highlighted the intersection of climate change and international law, particularly the impacts of armed conflict and military activities.

Palestine positioned itself as a key contributor to the proceedings and referred to the ICJ’s advisory opinion on nuclear weapons to support its argument on the relationship between environmental protection and international law in armed conflict.

At the ICJ hearing, Ammar Hijazi, Ambassador of Palestine to International Organizations in The Hague, linked the relationship between climate change and emissions during armed conflict.

“The State of Palestine is responsible for less than 0.001% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet Palestine now grapples with unprecedented severe climate events, mainly due to Israel’s occupation and policies and practices,” Hijazi said. “Israel’s occupation curtails our ability to support climate policy. As a party to the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement, Palestine is taking action to reduce 17.5 percent of its GHG by 2040, when our goal could be 26.6 percent if Israel’s occupation ends.”

Palestine argued that the court should not miss the opportunity to address the relation, obligation and rights of the people in the context of armed conflict and climate change in the historic opinion it will issue at the conclusion of these advisory proceedings. “This will fulfill the promise not to leave anyone behind and ensure that law applies to all,” Hijazi said.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Excerpt:

If lives and livelihoods are to be protected, if we want to avoid utter catastrophe, there simply is no time to lose. As has often been said, we are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change, and undoubtedly, we are the last generation that can do something about it.—Mansoor Usman Awan, Attorney General of Pakistan

Pattni has been accused of smuggling gold and exploiting natural resources in Africa for decades.

Nobody saw it coming. After years of brutal war in Syria, many believed the battle lines had stabilized, leaving only sporadic skirmishes or even the potential for negotiations. Syria? Was there anything left to report? That question was answered loud and clear on November 27. While the world looked away, a jihadist coalition backed by […]

Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumi has accepted defeat and congratulated former President John Mahama on his victory.

The Altos de Florida neighbourhood in southwest Bogotá shows the shift from rural to urban landscapes. Credit: UNDP

By Humberto Márquez
CARACAS, Dec 9 2024 (IPS)

Poverty, while declining in Latin America and the Caribbean so far this century, shows a new face, that of the looming vulnerability of the poor as they become less rural and more urban, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) says in a new analysis.

“Not only is there more urban poverty, but also a greater percentage of the population is highly vulnerable, that is, they are very close to falling – and any small shock will make them fall – below the poverty line,” Almudena Fernández, chief economist for the region at the UNDP, told IPS.“It is no longer enough to lift people out of poverty; we have to think about the next step, to continue on this path, so that the population can consolidate”: Almudena Fernández.

Thus, “there is a segment of the population that remains above the poverty line, but which is pushed below it by an illness or the loss of household income,” Fernández told IPS from New York.

Rosa Meleán, 47, who was a teacher for 20 years in Maracaibo, the capital of Zulia, in Venezuela’s oil-rich northwest, told IPS that “falling back into poverty is like the slides where children play in the schoolyard: they keep going up, but with the slightest push they slide down again”.

Meleán has experienced this in person several times, supporting her parents, siblings and nephews with her salary, falling into poverty when her working-class father died, improving with a new job, her salary liquefied by hyperinflation (2017-2020), leaving teaching to search for other sources of income.

“You have to see what it’s like to be poor in Maracaibo, walking in 40 degrees (Celsius) to look for transport, without electricity, rationed water and earning US$25”, the last monthly salary she had as a teacher before retiring five years ago.

And then came the covid-19 pandemic, limiting her new occupations as an office worker or home tutor. She has barely recovered from that blow.

“We live in a time when shocks are more common – from extreme weather events, for example – and we see a lot of economic and financial volatility. We are a much more interconnected world. Any shock anywhere in the world produces a very direct contagion, they are the new normal,” says Fernández.

Shoppers jostle for the best prices at the Lo Valledor street market in Santiago, Chile. Urban households that ride the poverty line are particularly sensitive to food inflation. Credit: Max Valencia / FAO

Poverty falling in numbers

Starting in the 1950s, Latin America and the Caribbean experienced a rapid process of urbanisation, becoming one of the most urbanised regions in the world.

Today, 82% of the population lives in urban areas, compared to the world average of 58%, according to the UNDP.

Over the last two decades, the region has made progress in reducing extreme poverty and poverty in general. Even with setbacks since 2014, it recorded its lowest poverty rate in 2022 (26%), with slight decreases estimated for 2023 (25.2%) and 2024 (25%).

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) indicates in its most recent report that poverty in 2023 will affect 27.3% of the region’s population, which it puts at 663 million people this year. This means that “172 million people in the region still do not have sufficient income to cover their basic needs (general poverty)”.

Among them, 66 million cannot afford a basic food basket (extreme poverty). But these figures are up to five percentage points better than in 2020, the worst year of the pandemic, and 80% of the progress is attributed to advances in Brazil, where transfers of resources to the poor were decisive.

ECLAC points out that poverty is higher in rural areas (39.1%) than in urban areas (24.6%), and that it affects more women than men of working age.

Despite the progress, “the speed of poverty reduction is starting to slow down, it is decreasing at a much slower rate. This is a first concern, because the region is growing less,” said Fernández.

She recalled that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts point to an average economic growth in the region of two per cent per year, “well below the world average. Thus, it will be more difficult to continue reducing poverty”.

A hill overcrowded with informal dwellings in the populous Petare neighbourhood in eastern Caracas. Credit: Humberto Márquez / IPS

Changing face

The proportion of poor people living in the region’s urban areas increased from 66% in 2000 to 73% in 2022, and the change is more dramatic among those living in extreme poverty, with the proportion of the urban extreme poor rising from 48% to 68% over the same period.

Tracing this change annually, a UNDP analysis found that urban poverty increased markedly during the commodity crisis of 2014 – and also during the pandemic – “revealing that urban poverty is more likely to increase in times of economic downturn than rural poverty”.

It argues that the post-pandemic rise in the cost of living affected urban households more, pushing households into poverty and worsening the living conditions of those who were already poor.

Urban households are more tied to the market economy than rural households, making them more vulnerable to economic fluctuations and related changes in employment.

In contrast, rural livelihoods allow households to use strategies such as subsistence farming, reallocation of labour, community support or selling assets such as livestock to cope with shocks. These are options that urban residents generally do not possess.

Another salient feature of the new face of urban poverty is that it is often concentrated in informal settlements on the peripheries of cities, where overcrowding and limited access to basic services create additional challenges.

Thus, in the Venezuelan case, “the features of poverty and vulnerability that stand out in urban poverty have to do with the precariousness of public services and the lack of opportunities,” Roberto Patiño, founder of Convive, a community development organisation, and Alimenta la Solidaridad, a welfare organisation, told IPS.

Patiño believes that “the burden of the cost of living and inflation is difficult to bear for people living in poverty in both urban and rural areas, even though in rural areas the food issue may be less serious”.

This is because in rural areas “people have access to smallholdings, to their own crops, and also, being farming areas, food costs tend to be lower than in the city, but health issues and other services such as transport, health and education are very precarious”, the activist pointed out.

Patiño mentioned another mark on the new face of poverty, that of the millions of Venezuelans who migrated to other South American countries in the last decade and who “have not recovered from the pandemic, from an economic point of view, with many of the migrants living in a precarious situation”.

A teenager doing homework in the Delmas 32 slum in Port-au-Prince. Credit: Dominic Chávez / WB

Seeking solutions

The UNDP argues that addressing poverty in urban and rural areas requires differentiated strategies, as policies that work in rural areas, such as promoting agricultural productivity and improving access to assets and markets, do not sit well with the plight of the urban poor.

For them, the cost of housing and food inflation are relevant concerns.

Fernández said that “much of the social policy that was implemented in the region decades ago, which is ongoing, was designed with a very rural poverty in mind, how to help the agricultural sector, how to achieve greater productivity in agriculture, how to meet basic unsatisfied needs in rural areas”.

“Now we must move toward a social policy that focuses a little more on the unsatisfied needs of urban poverty,” she said.

She believes that “urbanisation allows for another series of opportunities. For example, the greater agglomeration of people allows for easier access to services”, although there may also be negative effects such as a more difficult insertion in the labour market or health problems associated with overcrowding.

Among the solutions, Fernández ranked the need for greater economic growth first, “because we are not going to be able to reduce poverty if we do not grow”.

The economist then ranked education, good in quantity (coverage), but which must now focus on quality, in second place, in order to address the digital transition that is underway and the need for more training for workers.

Finally, the need for social protection – and despite slower growth and a tighter fiscal balance across the region, Fernández acknowledges –and investment in protecting people more, with policies and measures that include, for example, care, employability, productivity and insurance.

“It is no longer enough to lift people out of poverty; we have to think about the next step, to continue on this path, so that the population can consolidate, with a stable middle class that has mechanisms so that in times of stress or shock its consumption does not fall sharply,” said Fernández.

In other words, so that those who have their basic needs covered do not have to slide back down the poverty chute with every economic or health shock.

G20 social in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

By Jyotsna Mohan Singh
NEW DELHI, India, Dec 9 2024 (IPS)

South Africa’s G20 Presidency begun in December, with only 12% of SDG targets on track and significant backsliding on more than 30%. As we write this today, there is an urgent need for a paradigm shift and practical solutions for a progressive, people-centred, and development-driven agenda in a fractured global landscape that needs collective healing.

This sense of urgency was pinned down at the recent G20 Summit in Brasil, where South Africa assumed the Presidency amidst calls from global civil society at the Civil20 (C20) Summit to address today’s most pressing challenges: climate change, gender inequality, social inequalities, economic injustice and attacks on civic space.

This year, the Brasilian Association of NGOs (Abong), chaired the C20, amplifying the demands of social movements and civil society for global justice, highlighting the importance of gender in public policies, anti-racist economies, climate justice, the fight against hunger and the urgent need for a reform of international governance.

“Civil society is not merely a participant; it is a driving force for justice, equity, and sustainability. Without our voices at the table, solutions risk being incomplete, inequitable, and disconnected from the realities of the most vulnerable,” says Henrique Frota, Executive Director of Abong.

Yet, while the G20 leaders addressed major global crises, from climate change to economic inequities, the voices of those most affected by these challenges—grassroots movements, communities that have been historically marginalised, and civil society actors—still struggle to resonate within the halls of power. In fact, gaps persist in ambition and action, exposing a troubling disconnect between commitments made in international forums and the lived realities of citizens from across the globe.

Civil Society as Equal Partners: Moving Beyond Symbolism

The G20 Rio de Janeiro Declaration, emphasizes inclusivity and acknowledges civil society’s role , but it omits the issue of shrinking civic space in many member countries. The G20 should adopt concrete measures to protect civic freedoms and support CSOs in challenging environments. Futhermore, while the Declaration noted the inclusion of civil society groups in dialogues like the G20 Social Summit, it stopped short of guaranteeing institutionalised access for CSOs.

Jyotsna Mohan Singh, Forus, C20

Aoi Horiuchi, Senior Advocacy Officer at the Japan NGO Center for International Cooperation (JANIC) shared that despite opportunities for C20 to meet, decision-makers and submit recommendations, “access is still limited”. The meeting with President Lula happened just days before the Leaders’ Summit. He emphasizes, “civil society as an official stakeholder group, should have access to all preparatory meetings and have space for speaking up. To truly “leave no one behind”, we need to maintain the momentum and push for more progressive policies on taxing and economic justice.”

Meaningful engagement with civil society cannot be an afterthought. Governments must ensure that civil society has the autonomy, resources, and protected spaces necessary to contribute fully to global governance processes. Expanding civic engagement is crucial, especially at the national level. Data shows that 87% of the global population lives in countries where civic freedoms are restricted.

As we approach the first G20 Summit on the African continent in 2025, “breaking silos, shifting power, and amplifying Global South movements must become central priorities for global governance reform,” says Anselmo Lee, Lead from the Asia Civil Society Partnership for Sustainable Development.

“We must move beyond a purely event-driven approach and establish clear, systematic mechanisms for reviewing decisions and ensuring their effective implementation,” adds Harsh Jaitli, Chief Executive Officer of the Voluntary Action Network India (VANI). Over the years, along with other national platforms, VANI has worked towards strengthening the voice of civil society in this space.

Inequality and Systemic Change: Missing the Mark

The Declaration rightly identified inequality as a root cause of global challenges but failed to propose bold measures to dismantle the structures that sustain the giant inequality pyramid. The creation of the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty is a step forward. Specifically on access to food, the declaration identifies hunger as a pressing global issue, affecting 733 million people in 2023, and emphasizes the G20’s commitment to eradicating hunger. The vague language and lack of binding commitments undermine these efforts. Specific timelines and accountability frameworks are missing.

We need clear action to address inequalities and extreme wealth concentration, fair financing and reforms of multilateral development banks (MDBs) and public development banks (PDBs) to provide financing that directly benefits marginalised communities and an increase in support to local actions, notably investing in community-driven solutions that prioritise equity and sustainability. In the narratives and the actions, there is insufficient detail on the mobilization of resources for grassroots and community-led initiatives, a critical element of Forus’s advocacy for inclusive and sustainable financing.

Policy Coherence: Balancing the Scales and Building a Holistic Approach to Sustainability

While the G20 Declaration highlighted policy coherence as essential for achieving the SDGs, it leans heavily on private sector-driven solutions. Blended finance and private capital mobilization dominated the agenda, sidelining civil society and community-led initiatives and reinforcing the systemic inequities that perpetuate inequality.

A just and sustainable world cannot be achieved through fragmented efforts. Instead, a holistic approach that leverages the collective expertise and experiences of all stakeholders, public, private, and civil society. From a CSO perspective, a critical gap persists in aligning economic growth objectives with environmental, social, and human rights priorities. Without such alignment, conflicting objectives risk perpetuating systemic inequalities and ecological harm, undermining the promise of the SDGs. Moreover, the recent trend of certain governments, such as Argentina’s proposed withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, highlights a dangerous backslide from climate commitments and a disregard for sustainable development goals.

Gender Equality: From Rhetoric to Reality

The G20 Declaration’s recognition of gender equality and commitments to combating gender-based violence are important steps forward. However, the absence of concrete action plans undermines their potential impact. Women and girls continue to face systemic barriers, including unequal access to education, healthcare, and economic opportunities, as well as the pervasive threat of gender-based violence. To achieve meaningful progress, policies must go beyond rhetoric and actively dismantle discriminatory norms while creating leadership opportunities for women across all sectors.

The C20 group, has emphasised the need to address exclusion in all its forms. Expanding spaces for groups that have historically been marginalised and ensuring their full, equal, and meaningful participation in governance processes is not only a matter of justice but also a prerequisite for the type of development that We want. This includes acknowledging the intersecting challenges faced by rural and Indigenous women and those experiencing multiple forms of discrimination.

“Beyond commitments, we need frameworks that address intersectional inequalities and create leadership opportunities for all women, including rural, Indigenous, and LGBTIQ+ communities,” says Alessandra Nilo, C20 Sherpa, Director of Gestos, Brasil.

Reforming Global Governance for a Just Future

The G20 Declaration acknowledges the urgent need to reform global governance systems to address the complex crises of our time—geopolitical tensions, economic inequities, and climate emergencies. Commitments to the UN reform and enhancing transparency in global governance are promising. The emphasis on anti-corruption measures and progressive taxation aligns with civil society’s struggles.

A critical starting point is amplifying the voice of World Majority countries in global decision-making. The inclusion of the African Union as a full G20 member is a welcome development, signaling progress toward inclusivity. However, current power imbalances, where wealthier nations disproportionately influence global policy agendas, must be dismantled to ensure fairness and inclusivity.

As the G20, a premier global forum, assumes increasing responsibility for shaping the global agenda, it is imperative that it takes a strong stance on these issues and “shift powers”.

As the C20 Declaration reminds us, the solutions to today’s challenges lie in inclusive governance that empowers those most affected by global crises. We urge governments and G20 stakeholders to institutionalise civil society participation, prioritise rights-based solutions, and deliver on commitments to equity and sustainability. By weaving together the principles of rights, equity, sustainability, and collaboration, we can begin to build a future where “no one is left behind” not just in theory but also in practice.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Ben Curran, the brother of England internationals Sam and Tom, is named in Zimbabwe's squad for their one-day international series against Afghanistan.

South Africa move a step closer to the World Test Championship final with a 109-run victory over Sri Lanka in Gqeberha.

Max Verstappen will do an activity with junior competitors in Rwanda as his "work of public interest" for swearing at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen will do an activity with junior competitors in Rwanda as his "work of public interest" for swearing at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Furtuna (5) is getting the early education she deserves, and she loves counting with children at the Mahabre Dego Primary School, Tigray Region, Ethiopia. ECW and strategic partners’ investments in the country provide much-needed support for young crisis-affected girls and boys to have a better start in life through quality early education. Credit: ECW/Tesfaye

By Joyce Chimbi
ADDIS ABABA & NAIROBI, Dec 9 2024 (IPS)

Ethiopia’s education system is buckling under the weight of complex, competing challenges. The aftermath of a deadly war in the north, ongoing violence, climate-induced disasters, and widespread forced displacements have converged to push as many as 9 million children out of school. With close to 18 percent of schools in the country destroyed or damaged and persisting intercommunal conflicts in various regions, there are fears that many might never find their way back to school.

“In the absence of education, both boys and girls may be mobilized into militant groups, and frequently, girls will be subjected to child marriage. The choice is to provide them with an education, as it is the pathway to their future and contribution to their society and also as a protection mechanism,” says Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises in the United Nations. “Being out-of-school puts them in harm’s way and onto the path of abuse, violations, and the destruction of their lives, their communities, and eventually their country. We must ensure that no child is left behind in the education system. Investing in the very real potential of Ethiopia’s young generation is not an option—it is an absolute necessity.”

Sherif traveled to the Tigray region in the first week of December 2024 together with the ECW Global Champion and Finance Minister of Denmark, Nicolai Wammen. ECW’s high-level delegation saw first-hand the devastating effects of the deadly three-year conflict between the Ethiopian central government and the northernmost region of Tigray, Ethiopia.

Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) and Nicolai Wammen, ECW Global Champion and Danish Minister of Finance, visit a school in the Tigray Region in Ethiopia. The delegation met with girls and boys whose education was interrupted for over three years due to conflict. Thanks to ECW & strategic partners’ support in the region, students are back in the classroom where they belong.
Credit: ECW/Tesfaye

The aftermath and recovery process are such that, amid limited resources, the country is putting back the pieces of a broken education infrastructure to jumpstart an education system that had come to a complete halt. At the end of their joint visit, the two called for bold donor action to deliver the promise of a quality education to millions of crisis-impacted children.

“We have a multi-year investment and great partners on the ground, including a very supportive government. We work with UN agencies, including UNICEF, and civil society organizations such as Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Image1Day and other local Ethiopian organizations,” Sherif told IPS.

The ECW delegation visited schools benefiting from funding by ECW and strategic partners, met children, parents, and teachers, and saw first-hand the impact of ECW-supported programmes. In one school alone, enrollment increased by an impressive 20 percent last year due to a comprehensive package of interventions funded by ECW.

“It is heartwarming to witness the life-transforming power of quality education in the most complex crisis situations. I met strong and resilient girls and boys who are returning to learning, healing and thriving thanks to ECW’s support. However, conflicts, climate change and other crises continue to push millions of children out of school every year—in Ethiopia and beyond. Business as usual will not meet this challenge. I encourage private sector partners to join ECW’s efforts and invest in new and innovative financing strategies to fill the widening gap,” said Nicolai Wammen, Minister of Finance, Denmark, and ECW Global Champion.

Breiy Nuguse is a teacher at the ECW-supported FreKalsi Primary School in the Tigray Region, Ethiopia, where children are back in classrooms after over three years of missing out on an education due to the conflict that devasted the region. “Teaching makes me happy. I love teaching and when I see children learn, it is so rewarding. I was inspired to become a teacher, as my teachers were so wonderful when I was at school. I realize the gift of learning that they gave me, and I wanted to do the same for the next generation,” Nuguse said. Credit: ECW//Tesfaye

Sherif says the delegation saw significant progress in supported schools, such as “rehabilitated infrastructure and others rebuilt from scratch. We saw learning supplies, teachers who are well trained and sensitized, and professionals offering mental health and psychosocial services. There is a strong academic curriculum. Included in the national curriculum are critical issues of peacebuilding, ethics, and the arts. Education is ongoing in primary and secondary schools but also in pre-primary and early childhood development schools. Children with disabilities also benefit from targeted supports and inclusive education.”

Overall, they witnessed a protective learning environment that included systematic implementation of a referral identification of children in need and distribution of assistive devices, and children in need of assistance integrated with their peers, which promotes their inclusion and improves their social and learning skills.

There were girls’ clubs too for pursuit of shared and common interests. Teachers are trained on gender-sensitive issues, and there is systematic implementation of menstrual hygiene for adolescent girls, designated sanitation areas for girls, and promotion of water and sanitation.

Displaced and host community students who attend the ECW-supported Embandaso Primary School in the Tigray Region, Ethiopia, enjoy drawing so they can express their feelings and their dreams.
Credit: ECW/Tesfaye

“The children are receiving quality, safe, and inclusive holistic education. Having gone through mental health and psychosocial support through ECW investment, they are confident and expressive of their dreams. This is what investment in education can do, and we can do even more through bold donor action to reach every child with quality education and prospects for lifelong learning and earning,” Sherif observes.

But the challenges are still significantly complex and pressing, and resources are scarce.

Ethiopia also hosts the third largest refugee population in Africa, significantly exacerbating the country’s educational challenges. There were over 200,000 new arrivals from Sudan and Somalia in 2023-2024 alone, further increasing pressure on existing resources.

After a visit that revealed the numerous challenges Ethiopian children face and their unwavering determination to learn, ECW announced a USD 5 million First Emergency Response grant, increasing its total investments in the country to USD 93 million since 2017.

Of the new USD 5 million grant, UNICEF will be the implementing partner for USD 4 million. A local organization, Imagine 1Day, will implement the remaining USD 1 million. The organizations will work together with their partners to address urgent needs in the Oromia and Afar regions, where renewed conflict, intercommunal violence, drought and displacement have further disrupted education services in recent months.

These emergency interventions will build on the USD 24 million Multi-Year Resilience Programme announced last month by ECW, targeting needs in the Amhara, Somalia, and Tigray regions.

Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) and Nicolai Wammen, ECW Global Champion and Danish Minister of Finance, are welcomed by students at the ECW-supported Chila Primary School in Tigray, Ethiopia. Children here have missed more than three years of education due to COVID and the conflict that devastated the region.
Photo credit: ECW

“Imagine1Day is deeply grateful for this Education Cannot Wait First Emergency Response grant. With this generous support, we will provide over 13,000 out-of-school children in the Afar region—60 percent of whom are girls and 13 percent are children with disabilities—with access to safe learning environments. This project will not only enhance their well-being but also empower them to reach their full potential. Given that education in emergencies in Ethiopia has been severely underfunded, this grant is crucial in ensuring that crisis-affected children receive the education and support they need to build a brighter future,” said Dr. Seid Aman, Country Director of Imagine1Day.

To date, ECW’s combined multi-year and emergency investments in Ethiopia have reached more than 550,000 children and adolescents, providing a comprehensive range of supports—school rehabilitation, teacher training, mental health and psychosocial support, inclusive education, school feeding, gender transformative initiatives, early childhood education, and more. ECW’s support focuses on the most vulnerable, including girls, children from refugee, displaced and host community communities, and children with disabilities.

ECW’s investments are aligned to the Ethiopia Humanitarian Response Plan and the Ethiopia Education Sector Development Programme VI, a detailed planning document that provides a comprehensive outlook of the roadmap that the country’s education sector is taking. The Global Fund urgently calls for additional resources to fill the USD 64 million funding gap to meet the requirements for the acute education needs in the 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan for Ethiopia.

Working in emergency and protracted crisis settings across the globe, ECW supports quality education outcomes for refugee, internally displaced, and other crisis-affected girls and boys, so no one is left behind.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Local people from Watamu, Kenya, work with Local Ocean Conservation to pick up plastic on the beach. Credit: UNEP/Cyril Villemain

By Dharmesh Shah
KERALA, India, Dec 9 2024 (IPS)

As the fifth round of negotiations of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) for a global plastics treaty concluded in Busan, South Korea (25 November-December 1 2024), the meeting underscored both the complexities and the promises of multilateralism. What we saw in Busan was indicative of other environmental treatymaking spaces, including ones on climate and biodiversity.

There is a stark contrast between countries who are willing to show ambition and those who will engage in obstruction at any cost. This exposes the systemic challenges that both plague and demonstrate the enduring potential of multilateral environmental diplomacy to confront global challenges.

The plastics crisis affects every living being on the planet, becoming an undeniable reality rather than just a collection of statistics or headlines. Every day brings new stories of its impact on our health, environment, and livelihoods. Recognizing the scale of this crisis, countries around the world came together almost three years ago to say enough is enough.

The plastics treaty negotiations are the result of this collective realization, marking a critical step toward addressing a problem that touches every corner of our shared existence.

A 30-foot-high monument entitled Turn off the Plastics Tap by Canadian activist and artist Benjamin von Wong was exhibited at the UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2022. Credit: UNEP/Cyril Villemain

We were supposed to leave Busan with treaty text that would be ready for adoption. But instead, negotiators left without an agreement on the treaty, the barriers ahead are not only procedural or political; they are also philosophical. They reflect a deeper battle between the outdated paradigms of profit-driven growth and the urgent need for a collective reimagining of progress.

Petro-states are continuing to cling to fossil-fueled profits at the expense of collective well-being. It is not merely an economic strategy—it is a moral failure that will damage generations to come!

A Tale of Two Ambitions

Despite significant challenges, the negotiations also showed critical pathways forward. Panama and the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS) emerged as powerful voices advocating for a global cap on plastic production—a bold proposal that garnered substantial support from 100 countries.

In a decisive show of ambition during the closing plenary, Rwanda, speaking on behalf of 95 nations, championed ambitious controls on plastic production, while Mexico, representing 85 countries, pressed for stringent regulations on chemicals of concern. These elements represent the backbone of a treaty that is fit to overcome the scale of the plastics crisis and deliver meaningful and lasting solutions.

The Shadow of Petrochemical Interests

The petrochemical industry’s influence loomed large over INC-5, with industry representatives forming the largest single delegation at the talks — outnumbering delegations of Indigenous Peoples, scientists, and some countries including the European Union and all of its member states.

This outsized presence underscores the strategic interest of fossil fuel giants toward plastics as renewable energy and progressive climate policies shrink traditional markets.

Petrochemicals, used in everyday products like plastics and medical equipment, are now the largest drivers of global oil demand, surpassing cars and planes. They are projected to account for over a third of oil demand growth by 2030 and nearly half by 2050, adding 7 million barrels of oil and 83 billion cubic meters of natural gas consumption daily by mid-century.

This shift represents a calculated gamble to embed plastics deeper into the global economy, ensuring the fossil fuel industry’s continued dominance despite the environmental and health costs. Yet the environmental and health costs of this strategy are catastrophic. Without significant reductions in plastic production, the sector is poised to consume up to 31% of the remaining carbon budget needed to keep global warming below 1.5°C.

But climate impact is only part of the story. Plastics are fundamentally chemical products, often containing a cocktail of toxic additives that threaten human and planetary health. From endocrine disruptors leaching into water supplies to carcinogens linked to manufacturing processes, the chemical footprint of plastics amplifies the crisis far beyond its carbon implications.

Decarbonizing the plastics industry, as some companies now propose, is a false solution. True solutions must address not only the climate footprint of plastics but also their broader toxic legacy.

An Unfinished Fight

While the Busan meeting failed to produce a treaty, it succeeded in highlighting what must change for future negotiations to succeed. Moreover, it remained successful in retaining the obligations that mattered by countering derailing tactics by certain bad-faith actors. The next resumed session (INC-5.2) offers a critical opportunity to address key sticking points:

1. Production Limits: A global cap on plastic production is non-negotiable. Countries must resist attempts to dilute this measure and instead push for clear, enforceable targets.

2. Chemical Regulation: The treaty must include robust mechanisms to phase out harmful chemicals in plastics, coupled with transparency and traceability requirements to ensure that people have a right to know what chemicals go into their products.

3. Financing Mechanisms: Developing nations are disproportionately affected by plastic pollution and they need financial and technical support to implement treaty obligations. The treaty should be funded by developed countries and should also ensure that the private sector, especially polymer producers, pays its share.

4. Inclusivity and Transparency: The exclusion of observers, Indigenous peoples, and civil society from critical stages of the Busan session undermined the treaty’s legitimacy. Future sessions must prioritize meaningful inclusivity and transparency, ensuring that all voices, especially those from Indigenous Peoples and frontline communities, are heard.

Holding Spoilers Accountable

It is imperative to call out countries that continue to obstruct progress in the INC negotiations. Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Iran, among others, self-organized under the so-called “Like-Minded Countries” bloc and have consistently opposed meaningful advances in the treaty process. Their tactics go beyond mere scepticism of the process. They actively undermine the treaty’s ambition and hold back substantive decisions by weaponizing the requirement for consensus in all decisions.

Consensus, while valuable for inclusivity, is being misused as a way to stifle ambition. International precedent, from the Minamata Convention to the Montreal Protocol, demonstrates that incorporating voting as a last resort when countries can otherwise not agree, strengthens negotiation processes and ensures democratic decision-making. Without this safeguard, the plastics treaty risks being shaped by the interests of the few at the expense of the many.

To salvage the treaty’s ambition, the INC must embrace procedural reforms that prioritize efficiency and inclusivity. Voting provisions are essential to overcoming the current impasse and enabling the majority of nations to push forward robust, science-based measures.

A Path Forward

The road to a binding global plastics treaty will not be easy, but the urgency of the crisis leaves no room for complacency. Multilateralism, while imperfect, remains our best hope for tackling global challenges. The successes of past agreements, from the Montreal Protocol to the Minamata Convention, remind us that persistence and ambition can yield transformative results.

We may have left Busan without a treaty — but no treaty was better than a weak one. Civil society, scientists, and progressive nations must rally to maintain pressure, ensuring that the treaty addresses the full lifecycle of plastics—from extraction to disposal—and delivers justice for affected communities. High-ambition country negotiators will have to leave their diplomatic tightropes at home and bring their steel-toed boots to the next session.

In the words of Panama’s lead negotiator, Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, “When we reconvene, the stakes will be higher. This is not a drill, this is a fight for survival. We did not accept a weak treaty here, and we never will.”

Dharmesh Shah is Consulting Senior Campaigner with Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), and coordinator of the Civil Society and Rights Holders Coalition.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Voters across Africa are punishing ruling parties over the state of the economy.

Supporters of John Mahama have been celebrating after Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia accepted defeat.

Supporters of John Mahama have been celebrating after Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia accepted defeat.