COP27 and its outcomes in Kyrgyzstan
Last year, I represented the Climate Action Network Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia as an observer at COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. A major topic of the meeting was “loss and damage”, the outcome of the negotiations was to establish a Loss and Damage Fund. Time will tell if the fund actually helps underdeveloped countries like Kyrgyzstan, which are vulnerable to climate change.
The gates of COP27. (Contributed by Baktygul Chynybaeva)
The Ukrainian War and Kyrgyz Renewable Energy
Everyone is talking about the war in Ukraine. The conversation focused on the negative effects of war on climate, energy and food. In what I found to be an interesting discussion, representatives from the governments of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, as well as researchers from various organizations, discussed how to tackle hitherto neglected war-related emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and 2015 Paris agreement.
The spotlight is on a recently released report War Greenhouse Gas Balancing Initiative. this is estimated In just seven months, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine released an estimated 33 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
I attended a side event at the Ukrainian pavilion (at COP27, Ukraine had its own pavilion for the first time in COP history) and presented on renewable energy solutions during the war, highlighting volunteers making portable solar panels An example of a train station during the Kyrgyz-Tajik border conflict in September 2022.
when. . .when border conflict When the attack began between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, the main attack was on power lines. Dozens of Kyrgyz villages in the Batken region in southwestern Kyrgyzstan were without power, leaving around 10,000 houses and public facilities without light. The biggest loopholes are border checkpoints and the troops protecting the border, which constantly need charging facilities. From September 14th to 16th, Citizens of Kyrgyzstan Start raising humanitarian aid for the people of the Batken. The organization raised money for five solar panel stations, and information technology and engineering civic activists helped them build small, portable solar panel stations for border agents.
This case is very similar to the Ecoaction NGO movement in Ukraine, which is also raising funds for portable solar power stations for the army. My Ukrainian colleagues invited me to their side event at COP27, and I am delighted to share the strength of Kyrgyz civil society in the crisis.
Ukraine hosted a side event on renewable energy solutions. (Contributed by Baktygul Chynybaeva)
At the same time, Bek Sultan Ibraimov, head of the official Kyrgyz delegation and Deputy Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Technical Supervision, delivered a speech exist COP27 high-level meeting. Kyrgyzstan needs $6.3 billion to adapt to climate change, he said.
He stressed that in the past 20 years, the number of avalanches, mudslides and floods in Kyrgyzstan has increased by 60%, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. He continued: “As a emitter of 0.03% of global greenhouse gases, Kyrgyzstan calls for climate justice… Now is the time for a shared decision to recognize mountain ecosystems, with all available water, mineral and biological resources and, of course, alpine snow Feng’s ambassadors—the snow leopards—are extremely sensitive to climate change, and at the same time, vital to humanity’s present and future.”
NGO members come from Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asian countries and Kyrgyzstan. (Contributed by Baktygul Chynybaeva)
Kyrgyzstan also had a large number of representatives from environmental NGOs and youth communities. They participated in the People’s Plenary, as well as side events related to water, glaciers, health and air pollution issues.
Tajikistan and glaciers
President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahman, He was the only representative of Central Asia to attend the main events of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and spoke at the opening ceremony of COP27. He noted that Tajikistan is a mountainous country vulnerable to climate change and that the country’s glaciers are melting rapidly. He pointed out that “Tajikistan is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the whole of Europe and Central Asia. Ninety-three percent of Tajikistan’s territory is made up of mountains.”
“It is estimated that by 2050, one-third of the glaciers in Central Asia will be completely gone, which will greatly increase the risk of flash floods caused by the eruption of glacial lakes.”
It is worth highlighting that Tajikistan had its own pavilion at COP27, where it organized side events related to water security, glacier issues and mountain policy in the region. Previously, at COP26 in Glasgow, there was a joint pavilion for the five Central Asian countries, but at the 2022 conference, I did not see a joint position or representation event for the region.
Overall, this COP is historic because of the decision to create a loss and damage fund. This decision is the first step in opening up sources of financial support to the billions of people in the global East who have contributed little to the climate crisis but have suffered greatly from it. Among them are the people of Kyrgyzstan. To apply for funding from the fund, Kyrgyzstan will need to conduct more evidence-based research, such as analysis of data on the country’s glacier melt, loss and damage, and the effects of climate change. It also requires the development of adaptation strategies.
Baktygul Chynybaeva is a climate journalist and communications manager for the Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia Climate Action Network in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
