Philip J. Pierre, Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, is set to attend COP28, the 28th annual United Nations climate meeting, scheduled in Dubai, UAE. Pierre is also serving as the spokesperson for climate change in CARICOM.
The event is scheduled to happen from 30 November to 5 December 2023.
COP is short for “Conference of the Parties”, and it is a gathering of countries that engaged in the original 1992 UN climate agreement.
The conference holds huge importance as leaders gather to discuss approaches to limit and prepare for the upcoming challenges of climate change.
The primary aim of this year’s conference is to uphold the commitment made by the member countries in Paris in 2015, which aimed to limit long-term global temperature rises to 1.5°C.
Latest forecasts suggest that global temperatures are expected to rise by 2.4°C to 2.7 °C. This is in huge contrast to the rise in global temperature from pre-industrial times till now, which is only 1.2°C.
The window for the decided accomplishment is shrinking very fast and as a result, the UN stresses river maintaining the 1.5°C limit decided earlier.
The Small Island Development States (SIDS) of the Caribbean region are amongst the most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change. Experts say that the situation in this region will worsen if timely appropriate actions are not taken.
The Small Island Development States are threatened severely by a rise in sea level, flooding, transitions in rainfall patterns, droughts, stronger storms and hurricanes.
Climate change also takes a heavy toll on the economy of the Caribbean Nations every year. This is reflected in the rising costs of recovering from the devastation caused by extreme weather events like hurricanes and flash floods in the Caribbean region.
Ernest Hilaire will act as the Prime Minister in the absence of Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre.
