Mountain people should be prioritized in all climate-related negotiations: PM Deuba

November 1, Glasgow: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has urged world leaders to recognize the specific climate vulnerability of the high Mountains and accord high priority to the mountain agenda in all climate-related negotiations.

The PM said keeping the global temperature below 1.5° C was vital for mountain people and it was an issue of survival of the mountain people.

Making a statement as Leader of Nepali Delegation at the World Leaders Summit during the 26th Conference of Parties (COP 26) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Glasgow on Monday, he said with temperatures rising higher than the global average, glaciers are receding, snowfall is decreasing and permafrost is melting in the Himalayan region. Extreme climate events are increasing, causing huge economic and ecological losses and precious human lives.

PM Deuba said around 80% of Nepal’s population was at risk from natural and climate-induced hazards.

 The Prime Minister said during the last 40 years, natural disasters have caused close to 6 billion USD physical and economic damages in Nepal alone. 

According to the Prime Minister, Nepal has also called upon the Parties to agree on making Loss and Damage a stand-alone agenda for negotiations and support the framework of additional financing for it. The COP 26 must ensure adequate adaptation support for the most vulnerable countries by scaling up financial, technological, and capacity-building support.

Stating that the world can deliver on the goals only through quick, direct, and easy access to climate finance, Prime Minister Deuba urged the Parties to agree on a clear roadmap for a new collective, quantified and ambitious goal on climate finance before 2025.

Referring to rapid warming in the Himalayas posing a serious threat to food, water, energy, and human security of the entire region and glacier melting contributing to the existential threat to the coastal and island countries due to sea-level rise, Prime Minister Deuba shared that the Government of Nepal will host Sagarmatha Sambad – a dialogue named after Mt. Everest to raise awareness on the climate crisis in the Himalaya.