Envoy calls for more joint efforts on climate action

Developed countries urged to increase fund support for Global South nations

China will push for more financial support from developed countries for Global South nations amid the climate crisis, and rather than sharing in the support thus gained, it will aid poor economies with funding and technology to beef up their capability to tackle global warming, said China's special envoy for climate change.

The envoy, Xie Zhenhua, made the remarks on Friday during an event themed on South-South climate cooperation at the China Pavilion on the sidelines of the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP28, in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

For China and members of the Group of 77, benefit to one means benefit to all, whereas harm to one would mean harm to all, he said.

"We all directly fall victim to climate change. We should speak with one voice," he emphasized.

Xie said that developing nations need financial and technological support to enhance their capabilities for climate mitigation as well as adaptation, which are equally important.

"Now we need to make the pie (of financial support) bigger. After that, we should designate the money to the most fragile nations, our most fragile brothers, to help them improve their capabilities," he said.

China, the world's largest developing nation, will not compete with small island states, least-developed countries and African nations for the financial support, Xie said, but will instead offer other developing nations funding and technology via South-South climate cooperation.

For years, China has made efforts to help developing Global South nations beef up their capabilities on early warning, which is highly important, since it concerns people's lives, he said.

According to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, as of this month, China has signed 48 memorandums of understanding on South-South climate cooperation with 40 developing nations.

In accordance with these documents, China, together with these nations, will jointly build low-carbon demonstration zones, carry out programs on climate mitigation and adaptation, and organize training to enhance capacity building, the ministry said.

It also said that to date, China has offered training on tackling climate change to 2,400 officials from over 120 countries.

"We have done many things, and we are willing to further enhance our cooperation (with other developing nations) in this regard," Xie said.

Philda Kereng, Botswana's minister of environment and tourism, said China has played a significant role in technology transfer to support climate action in developing countries.

As a leader in the production and deployment of renewable energy technology, such as solar panels, China has made such technology more accessible and affordable to countries in the Global South, Kereng said.

She also said such accessibility and affordability are critical for developing nations as they struggle to combat climate change.