Press release
Minister Ryan attends United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week
From Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
Published on
Last updated on
Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan will attend the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week in New York, which runs from today until Saturday.
The core issues to be discussed at High-Level Week 2023 include sustainable development goals, climate and energy, and loss and damage. This is also a key staging post in the lead up to COP28, which takes place in Dubai in November and December, where it is expected that the Government of Ireland and Minister Ryan will again play a leading role in negotiating for accelerated action on climate and the transition to renewable energy.
While at the United Nations General Assembly, Minister Ryan will be meeting with a number of European Ministers. His aim is to secure a robust COP28 position for the EU in favour of solving the climate financing problem for developing countries. Intrinsic to this will be discussions to help ensure a move more towards greater renewable energy accessibility and investment in areas of the world where millions of people are still living without secure power or are reliant on fossil fuels. Africa, for example has 40% of the world’s solar radiation but has the same number of PV panels installed as The Netherlands.
A busy week of meetings and speaking engagements include:
While in New York, Minister Ryan will also have a bilateral programme that includes meetings with Ireland’s UN Youth Delegates; the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and Ministerial meetings on Loss and Damage. Last year, at COP 27, he was appointed EU lead negotiator on the central issue of loss and damage. As a result, Ireland now shares a seat on the UN Transition Committee on Loss and Damage which has responsibility for operationalizing new funding arrangements and bringing the fund for consideration and adoption at this year’s COP28 in Dubai.
Speaking while in New York, Minister Ryan said:
"As we enter the third Decade of Action for the SDGs, Ireland recognises the urgency of moving into the next phase of implementation. This Summit is an important opportunity for the world to recommit to the 2030 Agenda and uphold all principles enshrined in it. I am in New York to reaffirm our commitment to the SDGs, recognising that they offer us a pathway and opportunity to create a better, greener, and safer world, leaving no one behind.
"I welcome the initiative taken by UN General Secretary in also convening a Climate Ambition Summit this week. Following the release of the Global Stocktake, this represents an important opportunity, in advance of COP, for the world to kick-start action on ambitious new commitments, transforming words into action, keeping the Paris Agreement alive by moving away from fossil fuels to clean energy, rapid cuts to emissions and commitment to science-based action."
ENDS
The 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly marks a crucial milestone in the journey towards achieving the 2030 Agenda and the urgent need to put the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) back on track.
Heads of State and Government will gather at UN Headquarters in New York on 18-19 September 2023 to review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and provide high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to the target year of 2030 for achieving the Goals. The outcome will be a negotiated political declaration.
The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) formed the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) in run-up negotiations at the UNFCCC to the Paris Agreement in 2015, helping to secure key elements of the deal, including the 1.5C temperature goal, the net zero global emissions pathway by the second half of the century, and a five-year cycle for updating mitigation contributions.
Since then, the HAC has worked to realise the promises of the Paris Agreement it came together to deliver. The work has accelerated and expanded in scope, driving forward ambitious global climate action. And the science has only become clearer since Paris, underscoring the imperative of keeping global temperature increase below 1.5C if we are to avert the most severe impacts of climate change.
The United Nations Climate Change Conference COP27 closed with a breakthrough agreement to provide "loss and damage" funding for vulnerable countries hit hard by climate disasters.
Creating a specific fund for loss and damage marked an important point of progress. Governments took the ground-breaking decision to establish new funding arrangements, as well as a dedicated fund, to assist developing countries in responding to loss and damage. Governments also agreed to establish a ‘transitional committee’ to make recommendations on how to operationalise both the new funding arrangements and the fund at COP28 next year.