COUNTRIES like the Philippines must continue to push for acknowledgment and compensation for “loss and damage” ahead of Conference of the Parties 27, or the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda has said.
“Climate change kills. There is loss and damage. And countries like the Philippines that are the most at-risk due to its impacts have a moral responsibility and the moral ascendancy to fight for the principle of loss and damage,” Salceda said. “Due to climate risks, we are now the most at-risk country in the world according to the 2022 Global Risk Report. Arguably, nobody is more affected by climate change than we are. If we are soft on this position, we throw other climate-vulnerable countries under the bus. So, we have to be strong on loss and damage,” Salceda added.
“It didn’t even hit Mindanao, as far as landfalls go. But most of the dead is from Mindanao. More communities are becoming vulnerable to the effects of stronger weather events,” the lawmaker said.Salceda said that apart from demanding more support for the country’s clean energy transition, countries like the Philippines should also ask for more direct compensation mechanisms and funds that can be activated as soon as climate-related disasters take place.