 "Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, Former President of Mauritius")
“Climate change is everyone’s issue and not region-specific,” former Mauritius President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim said at the Rising Bharat Summit 2024, adding that the debate around climate has divided the Global South and the Global North.
Fakim, a biodiversity scientist, said that both regions do not realise that there is no Planet B, stressing the importance of taking the climate change issue seriously.
“The approach of Global South, Asia, and India towards climate is inclusive - a much part of the system. Africa’s contribution towards global emissions is less than 3 percent while Global North is 25 percent,” Fakim added.
‘Need to start respecting nature’
When asked how India and other South Asian countries are doing to striking a balance between safeguarding the environment and meeting developmental needs, Fakim said, “As countries like India and China continue to rise in order to widen their economies and increase job opportunities, there should be an effort toward to link trade to cleaner technologies.”
She added that if countries fail to make trade more environmentally friendly, it would pose a danger to the future.
India, however, the former president said, is mindful of the way Beijing is planning to progress as the country is set to climb up the ladder of emerging economies.
No one should blame India for climate change: UNEP ex-director
Also speaking at the session, the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) former executive director Erik Solheim said that the burden of climate change should not fall on India or the Global South as the West’s per capita emission is much more than that of India or China.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsSolheim said that the effects of climate change should just not be communicated to people hailing from big cities like Mumbai or Bengaluru but should also reach village dwellers.
He lauded India’s efforts towards developing solar energy panels under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“The price of solar energy has fallen by 90 per cent in one decade and that of wind energy has dropped by 85 per cent. So if you make a shift from coal or fossil fuels into renewables, it will not just be good for health, but also good for the economy as it is cheaper,” he said.
PM Modi leading India in right direction
The former UNEP executive chief said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi is leading India in the right direction. He gets the big picture right. The Prime Minister understands that climate change and environmental actions are not a burden for India, it has enormous opportunities including more jobs, and getting people out of poverty, by doing it in agrarian way.”
Acknowledging India’s growth in the renewable energy sector, Solheim said, “One reason why a state like Gujarat seems to be in the lead in India is because they got the relationship with business right at an early stage. It’s a more efficient and business-friendly system.”