Climate Change and theClimate Change, and the Post 2015 Development Agenda

Karin FernandoWorld Youth Conference, CANSA side event, May 9, 2014

Focus of the PresentationFocus of the Presentation

• Impacts of Climate Change in South Asia from a i i tisocio-economic perspective

• The post 2015 development agenda (MDGs/SDGs) and climate change

Climate Change in South Asia

Socio-economic ImpactsSocio-economic Impacts Poverty

o SA is home to 42% of the worlds poor –including highp g gpercentages of youth and children

o Economic growth is rising (avg is 6%/yr), so is inequality –(avg earnings of richest 10% 8X that of poorest 10%)(a g ea gs o c es 0% 8 a o poo es 0%)

o Poor most reliant on “climate risky” livelihoods and live indegraded environments

Agricultureo Employs > 50% of people in SA , it is 20% of the region’s

GDP and mainly smallholder farmers

o CC affects availability of food – thus food security ofmillions and will increase malnutrition in a region whereproportion of undernourished (250 million children) is wellabove the global average

Climate Change in South Asia contd

WaterWatero Water availability is reducing (Annual Avg/capita water

availability in SA < 2,500 m3/ world avg is about 7,000 m3)

th 90% f f h t i f i lto > than 90% of freshwater use is for agriculture

o 938 million people live without good sanitation facilities

Energygyo 493 million people do not have access to electricity

o Demand for energy for economic growth is rising by about7% and availability and affordability can be a burden on the7%, and availability and affordability can be a burden on thefiscal status and affect growth prospects.

HealthDi l d d li i i ill ill ff ho Disaster related and climate sensitive illnesses will affect thelives of millions and affect health expenditure as well asrecovery costs.

The SDGs – Focus Areas

Guiding Principles• Based on Agenda 21/

Johannesburg Plan

1. Poverty eradication2. Food Security and

Nutrition

12. Promoting equality13. Sustainable cities and

human settlementsgand Rio Principles.

• Be consistent with international law.

• Build upon

Nutrition3. Health and

population dynamics4. Education

human settlements14. Sustainable

consumption and production

• Build upon commitments already made.

• Contribute to

5. Gender equality and women’s empowerment

6 Water and Sanitation

15. Climate16. Marine resources

oceans and seas17 Ecosystems and

implementation of all major summits

• Address and incorporate all three

6. Water and Sanitation7. Energy 8. Economic Growth9. Industrialisation

17. Ecosystems and biodiversity

18. Means of implementationincorporate all three

dimensions of sustainable development and their

9. Industrialisation10. Infrastructure11. Employment and

Decent Work for all

19. Peaceful and non-violent societies capable institutions

inter-linkages.• Aligned to the MDGs

Source: www. sustainabledevelopment.un.org/focussdgs.html

The Proposed SDGS and links to CC

Breaking Down Some of the Focus AreasBreaking Down Some of the Focus Areas

• Focus area 1: Poverty – overriding priority • Addressing absolute and relative poverty and inequalitiesg p y q• access to property and productive assets, finance and markets

for all women and men; • providing social protection to the poor (to identified groupsproviding social protection to the poor (to identified groups

children, youth, elders, unemployed, disabled etc).

• Focus area 2. Food security and nutritiony• year-round access to affordable, adequate, safe, nutritious food• improved access to credit/ financial services, land tenure, and

agricultural extension services for allagricultural extension services, for all • Boosting productivity but also sustainable farming practices• Research and access to modern technology

E i l li h ll i h i l• Environmental concerns – climate change, pollution, chemicals; • Creating non-farm rural employment opportunities

F 6 W t d it ti

The Proposed SDGs contd.

• Focus area 6. Water and sanitationo Water security - to be considered holistically (water cycle) o Ensuring access to safe drinking water and sanitation for all g g

HHs, schools, health facilities, workplaces and refugee camps. o Adequate facilities and infrastructure, both built/natural, for

drinking water and sanitationgo improving water-use efficiency, including more wastewater

treatment, recycling and reuse;o effective water governanceo effective water governance o protecting and restoring water-linked ecosystems like

mountains, watersheds and wetlands; o bringing fresh water use in line with supply;o bringing fresh water use in line with supply; o investing in water harvesting technologies; o Eliminating pollution of water bodies, and protecting aquifers; o Reducing risks and impacts of water-related disasters.

• Focus area 7 Energy (engine of growth/ development)

The Proposed SDGs contd.

Focus area 7. Energy (engine of growth/ development) o Ensuring affordable, modern, reliable energy for all o Deployment of cleaner, low/zero-emission energy technologies;

I i h h f bl i h l b lo Increasing the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix - including policy, space, incentives for renewable energy;

o improving energy efficiency (i.e industry, agriculture, transport) o Phasing out inefficient fossil fuel subsidieso Mobilizing finance to invest in modern energy infrastructure; o Sharing knowledge, promoting partnerships, building capacity g g , p g p p , g p y

and transferring modern energy technologies.

The Proposed SDGs contd.

• Focal Areas 8, 9, 10 - Economic growth, Industrialization, gInfrastructureo Trade facilitation, preferential market access for LDCs o International technology cooperation technology transfero International technology cooperation, technology transfer,

upgrading, value addition; o Improvements to energy and resource productivity,

management of environmental processes and resource usemanagement of environmental processes and resource use o Creating productive, well-paid jobs. o Adequate and reliable infrastructure for water, sanitation,

energy transport and communicationsenergy, transport and communications o Improving agriculture infrastructure

• Focus area 14. Sustainable Consumption and Productiono Fundamental changes in the way economies and societies

produce and consume are indispensable for achieving global sustainable development.

• Focus area 15 Climate

The Proposed SDGs contd.

Focus area 15. Climateo Reaffirming/reinforcing international commitments (i.e.

temp/GGE)o Building resilience and adaptive capacity in developingo Building resilience and adaptive capacity in developing

countries; o introducing inter alia economic incentives for investments in

low carbon solutions/climate resilient solutionslow-carbon solutions/climate-resilient solutions.

o “…Regard must be paid to the principles of the UNFCCC, including that of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, and to supporting and urging greater ambition in the ongoing negotiations towards a strong and effectiveongoing negotiations towards a strong and effective agreement in 2015”.

Implementation mechanisms

• Technology innovation and transfer seen as the main tool for changeg

• Financing from both ODA and DDA • Commitment from govts and other stakeholders• Public Private Partnerships• Greater role by private sector – especially through

business practicesbusiness practices

• Infrastructure development also seen as necessarynecessary

Advantages of MDGs/SDGs to Climate Change

• Integrates environment/CC into human development frameo Definite step up from existing MDGs and shows cross linkso Definite step up from existing MDGs, and shows cross links

and raises attention to climate related human vulnerabilitieso Widespread discussions offer greater opportunities to lobbyo Raises the issue from an achieving poverty perspective thato Raises the issue from an achieving poverty perspective – that

may increase lobby/traction to complement UNFCCCo Can lead to ODA/Partnerships that can address CC

• CC directly linked to the Sustainable Energy Goal and others from an emissions/efficiency perspectiveso Also links to economic processes (waste management,

pollution control)

• Universal goals but likely that countries can set own targets

Some Issues/Gaps

M i /d i f CC i f UNFCCC• Main onus/drive for CC is from UNFCCCo A separate goal for Climate change – will it happen? Is it

necessary? Or if it is well integrated will that be better? y gAt present it is not adequate (i.e health)

Changes are within the current growth model – is this transformative enough?transformative enough?

o i.e does not address natural limits explicitly

• Adaptation and DRM not adequately elaborated on• Adaptation and DRM not adequately elaborated on

• A stronger rights based approach is felt necessary to address inequalityaddress inequality

• Success reliant on issue such as good governance, peace and mutually beneficial partnerships p y p p

• Final goals/indicators dependent on government negotiations/buy in/power plays

Reference for Statistics used:

(as sourced in) Gunasekera, V. 2013. Life on the Margins: Putting Inequality at the Heart f th P t 2015 D l t A d E i R i (A /N ) S i l iof the Post-2015 Development Agenda, Economic Review (Aug/Nov), , Special issue,

People’s bank

(as sourced in) Scott, A. 2013. Why South Asia Needs To Have Climate Change in the Post-2015 Development Agenda, Economic Review (Aug/Nov), 2013, Special issue, People’s bank

IEA, 2011. World Energy Outlook, 2011

WHO, n/d. Drinking water and sanitation coverageWHO, n/d. Drinking water and sanitation coverage

World Bank, 2014. Regional Brief

For further information contact: Karin Fernando (karin@cepa.lk)

Thank youThank you