Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly giving his speech at COP29
Madbouly's remarks came during his speech on Wednesday at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, where he noted that reports from the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) indicate that African countries already allocate up to five percent of their GDP to address climate change.
The UNFCCC describes the Paris Agreement as a global pact that urges more substantial efforts from governments and other stakeholders to combat climate change.
During his speech, Madbouly also underscored Egypt's commitment to adopting an integrated approach towards sustainable, environmentally conscious development.
He highlighted Egypt’s long-term climate strategy, which sets environmental goals until 2050, alongside a sustainable development roadmap targeting 2030 and ongoing investments directed towards green transformation projects.
Meanwhile, Madbouly outlined Egypt’s steps to ensure that 42 percent of its energy comes from new and renewable sources by 2030, marking significant progress towards sustainable energy goals.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly giving his speech at COP29
He also referred to Egypt’s "Novi Platform," a national programme supported by various development partners, which prioritizes projects in water and energy and expands sustainable transportation initiatives in major cities.
The prime minister noted the country’s consistent focus on implementing the climate agenda, specifically addressing loss and damage, which remains a challenge for many developing countries lacking sufficient financial and technical resources.
COP29 amid challenges
Madbouly acknowledged that COP29 occurs amid intensifying regional and international crises and increasingly severe and unpredictable climate events. He highlighted the economic and human toll these events take, adding extra strain on affected countries.
He emphasized that Egypt has consistently focused on "implementation" concerning the climate agenda, working to close the gap in addressing losses and climate disasters. Developing countries often lack the financial and technical capacity to manage these disasters, resulting in economic and human costs.
Further, he highlighted that Egypt succeeded at COP27 in mobilizing international support to establish a loss and damage fund and launch a negotiation track on a just transition that considers the social and economic dimensions of the agreed-upon transformation under the Paris Agreement.
He noted Egypt’s success in including energy and water issues in the conference's official decisions and establishing the Sharm El-Sheikh Partnership for Adaptation.
Madbouly further called attention to the funding challenges facing Egypt and African countries, especially regarding access and the conditions associated with climate finance.
He emphasized the need for developed nations to lead in climate funding, stressing that grants and highly concessional loans should dominate climate finance, not commercial-rate loans that impose debt burdens.
The prime minister reaffirmed Egypt's negotiating team's full support for Azerbaijan’s presidency of COP29, expressing hope for achieving shared goals and aspirations from the conference.
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