Without Regional Climate Weeks, COP conferences are not fit for purpose, warns WaterAid

on
27 March 2024
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If the world’s most vulnerable are not at the table, then UN climate talks are no longer fit for purpose, warns WaterAid. 

This week, the UNFCCC confirmed that this year’s Regional Climate Weeks will be cancelled until further notice, which WaterAid has criticised as 'hugely disappointing'. 

Regional Climate Weeks are a vital opportunity to bring a stronger regional voice to the international table in the lead up to COPs - those who are footing the bill on a crisis they have done the least to cause.

Last year we saw four regional climate weeks: Africa Climate Week in Nairobi, Kenya; Middle East and North Africa Climate Week in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Latin America and the Caribbean Climate Week in Panama City, Panama; and Asia-Pacific Climate Week in Johor Bahru, Malaysia.

At Africa Climate Summit alone, over 20 commitments were made by African heads of states - commitments and announcements that equated to a combined investment of nearly USD 26 billion from public, private sector, and multilateral development banks, philanthropic foundations, and other financing partners.

This is the right way forward as while extreme weather events affect all of us, we know their impacts are not felt equally.

In response to UNFCCC’s cancellation of regional climate talks, Dulce Marrumbe, Head of Partnerships and Advocacy at WaterAid’s Regional Office for Southern Africa, said:

“The climate crisis is a water crisis, and the people on the frontlines of climate change are vital to solving it. That's why we are hugely disappointed to hear that UN Climate Change has decided to cancel the 2024 Regional Climate Weeks.                                                                                                       

“These provide a vital platform for those already experiencing the impacts of climate change – including women and girls, people experiencing marginalisation and indigenous communities – to share their experiences, expertise and unique perspectives.

“With their leadership and participation, we're far better equipped to adapt to our changing climate, and make sure that everyone, everywhere has access to clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene.

“If the world’s most vulnerable are not at the table, then UN climate talks are no longer fit for purpose.” 

ENDS

For more information, please contact:

Emma Sutton-Smith: [email protected]. Or call WaterAid’s press line on 020 7793 4537, or email [email protected].

Notes to Editors:

WaterAid is an international not-for-profit determined to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. We work alongside communities in 22 countries to secure these three essentials that transform people’s lives. Since 1981, WaterAid has reached 28 million people with clean water and nearly 29 million people with decent toilets.

 For more information, visit our website wateraid.org/uk, follow us on Twitter @WaterAidUK, @WaterAid or @WaterAidPress, or find us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram.

  • 703 million people in the world – almost one in ten – don’t have clean water close to home.
  • 2.2 billion people in the world – more than one in four – don’t have safe water.
  • Almost 2 billion people in the world – one in four – lack soap and/or water to wash their hands at home, if they have a place at all.   
  • 1.5 billion people in the world – almost one in five – don’t have a decent toilet of their own.
  • 570 million people in the world – 1 in 14 – have a decent toilet but have to share it with people outside their family. This compromises the privacy, dignity and safety of women and girls.
  • Almost 400,000 children under five die every year due to diseases caused by unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene. That's more than 1000 children a day, or almost one child every one and a half minutes.  
  • Investing in safely managed water, sanitation and hygiene services provides up to 21 times more value than it costs.

[1] WHO/UNICEF (2023). Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2022: special focus on gender. Available at: washdata.org/reports/jmp-2023-wash-households-launch (accessed 11 Jul 2023).    

[2] WHO (2023). Burden of disease attributable to unsafe drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene: 2019 update. Available at: who.int/publications/i/item/9789240075610 (accessed 24 Jul 2023).  

[3] WaterAid (2021). Mission-critical: Invest in water, sanitation and hygiene for a healthy and green economic recovery. Available at: washmatters.wateraid.org/publications/mission-critical-invest-water-sanitation-hygiene-healthy-green-recovery (accessed 1 Nov 2023).
 

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