South African President Cyril Ramaphosa warned Thursday that adverse effects of climate change could reverse hard-won development gains on the continent
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd April, 2021) South African President Cyril Ramaphosa warned Thursday that adverse effects of climate change could reverse hard-won development gains on the continent.
"Without effective adaptation, climate change has the potential to reverse the developmental gains of many of the countries on the continent and push millions of people further into poverty and unemployment," he said at the US-hosted virtual summit on climate.
To tackle it, the South African government plans to drive greenhouse gas emissions down starting from 2025, a decade earlier than originally planned.
The president stressed that African countries were particularly vulnerable to climate change impact. He urged developed nations to provide climate change aid separately from the conventional development assistance when it is given in the form of loan financing.
"The debt burden of developing countries has worsened. We call on developed economies, which historically bear the greatest responsibility for emissions, to meet their responsibilities to developing economies," he said.
Ramaphosa spoke during the first day of the virtual leaders' summit on climate, which was called by US President Joe Biden to mark his country's return to the 2015 Paris climate deal.
