STATEMENT: Save the Children calls for climate justice as negotiations at COP27 pick up again

This week, negotiations at COP27 will pick up again with high expectations for outcomes around Loss and Damage. Please find a statement from Save the Children’s Pakistan Country Director below.

Save the Children’s Country Director in Pakistan, Muhammad Khuram Gondal, said:  

“This year, the worst flooding Pakistan has seen in decades has plunged the country into the grip of a crisis so massive that it’s almost impossible to imagine unless you’ve seen the destruction with your own eyes. We’re talking about millions of people left homeless, children dying of disease, more than 25,000 schools damaged or destroyed and food sources completely wiped out. The effects of what has happened this year will be felt for generations to come.  

“There is little doubt that the climate crisis is triggering extreme weather conditions and making natural disasters like these floods more frequent and severe. It’s only right that high-income and high polluting countries compensate Pakistan for the damage it has suffered. Children and families affected by these floods – who were already the country’s poorest - did not deserve to find themselves at the sharp end of the climate crisis, to which they have done next to nothing to contribute.  

“Lower-income countries and island nations have been talking about the concept of “loss and damage” for years, and at COP27, it’s encouraging to see it gain momentum.

“Negotiators have decided to finalise negotiations on loss and damage by 2024 – but for children in Pakistan this is not good enough. This COP, taking place right now, needs to deliver concrete decisions on a financing mechanism for loss and damage – one that is in the best interests of children – to help children in Pakistan and across the world recover from these devastating events.”

ENDS

This COP, Save the Children is asking leaders to provide new, additional and ambitious funding to address rapidly escalating loss and damage, and support the creation of a new climate finance mechanism to help address the cost of the irreversible impacts of the climate crisis to children’s rights. This includes supporting communities already hit by irreversible climate impacts. 

Muhammad Khuram Gondal is available for interview from Pakistan. We also have spokespeople at COP available for interview.

For further enquiries please contact:

• Emily Wight, Emily.Wight@savethechildren.org
• Charlotte Rose, Charlotte.Rose@savethechildren.org
• Our media out of hours (BST) contact is media@savethechildren.org.uk / +44(0)7831 650409

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