Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley Commends COP28 Agreement on Transitioning from Fossil Fuels

The following is a statement from Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley on COP28

Yesterday, at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP-28), the world has taken a major step in the fight against the climate crisis. With an agreement being reached to commit to transitioning away from a reliance on fossil fuels to provide or satisfy our energy needs, we are one step closer to securing a better future for the generations to come. In this historic moment, I commend COP-28 President, H.E. Sultan Al Jaber for both leading this summit and reaching this important outcome.

As we celebrate this milestone of global commitment, I believe it is equally important that our focus sharpens on the challenges that lie beyond this commitment. The world finds itself at a critical juncture in time, where issues of access to finance, technology, and the timely and affordable supply of equipment, emerge as lynchpins in determining the fate of millions of people in smaller countries like my own. The reality is, in smaller economies, these challenges loom larger, underscoring the urgent need for collective action and solidarity.

Quite literally, the lives and livelihoods of our people and the future of our countries rests on our ability to navigate these hurdles. If we fail to address these critical issues, it will without doubt lead us down a perilous path. As the climate crisis continues to disproportionately impact our vulnerable nations, they risk becoming both un-investable and uninsurable, as we have started to see happen in several instances. These are entirely unavoidable, yet dire consequences.

And so, I applaud and support the direction COP-28 has taken with respect to the transition away from fossil fuels. It is undeniably a positive one. But we cannot be lulled into a sense of complacency. We are going in the right direction, but we cannot take our eyes off the destination – a destination where financial barriers do not impede progress, where technology can be the catalyst for sustainability, and the ability to affordably access essential equipment is not a stumbling block, but a stepping stone toward a resilient future.- Mia Amor Mottley