In preparation for the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which is scheduled to start on 1 November, the European Union (EU) and the Organisation of African, Caribbean, and Pacific States (OACPS) met in an OACPS High-level Dialogue with Partners on 15 September 2021 to discuss common priorities for the Conference.
The EU and OACPS are deeply concerned about the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report, which confirms that global warming will rise from 1.5 °C to 2 °C by the middle of the 21st Century, unless immediate, profound, large-scale and sustained measures are taken to reduce CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions. In this regard the EU and OACPS call on all Parties that have not already done so, to submit or enhance their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Long-Term Strategies that set us on a pathway to net zero emissions.
The EU and OACPS further called for commitments made on financing and adaptation to be honoured and to be enhanced. The EU and OACPS also underscored the importance of capacity building for supporting vulnerable partner countries in implementing their climate policies so that they are able to fulfil their international obligations under the Paris Agreement.
Capacity building for adaptation will be one of the main subjects of a joint EU-OACPS high-level panel event that will take place at the EU pavilion during COP26 on 9 November 2021. The event will be co-chaired by the EU Slovenian Presidency, the OACPS Secretary-General and the European Commission.