World climate conference Germany’s Development Minister Schulze travels to COP27 in Egypt
Press release 13 November 2022 | German Development Minister Schulze is travelling to COP27 in Egypt today. She will be lobbying together with developing countries to advance concrete solutions for climate protection, adaptation to climate change and dealing with climate-related loss and damage. At the start of her trip, the Minister will be visiting projects in the Nile Delta that illustrate how one of the most vulnerable regions of the world is dealing with climate change.
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German Development Minister Svenja Schulze is visiting a BMZ-financed project in Egypt that contributes to making irrigation of fields more efficient and reducing water losses.
Schulze says: “In Egypt we can see the dramatic impact of climate change. One of the most fertile, most densely populated regions in the world, the Nile Delta, is under threat from water shortage, rising sea levels and salinisation. What is at stake is whether millions of people will actually have food and a place to live in this region in the future. The first answer to that is a rapid global exit from coal, oil and gas, and the systematic protection of our natural environment. But this first answer is no longer enough. We also need to work together in an effort to adapt to climate change and deal with the climate-related loss and damage that can no longer be prevented. That is why I will be launching a Global Shield against Climate Risks at COP27 together with the most vulnerable countries.”
As part of the “Team Germany”, under the lead of the Federal Foreign Office, at COP27 the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development is in charge of climate-related loss and damage and adaptation to climate change in developing countries and is also responsible for a large part of Germany’s climate finance.
During her two-day visit to the Nile Delta bordering the Mediterranean Sea the Development Minister is visiting projects that demonstrate approaches of dealing with the climate crisis. She wants to see how Egypt is addressing the pressing issue of climate change while ensuring that its response is socially fair for vulnerable groups. She is visiting a project on climate change adaptation in coastal protection (Enhancing Climate Change Adaptation in the North Coast and the Nile Delta Regions in Egypt) and a BMZ-financed project that contributes to making irrigation of fields more efficient and reducing water losses.
Alongside the climate-related projects the Minister will also familiarise herself with two Egyptian programmes on social transfers (Takaful and Karama). The social protection systems are reaching more than 10 million people, three quarter of whom are women. Social protection instruments that can be drawn on if a crisis occurs are also important elements of the future Global Shield against Climate Risks.
Schulze says: “Social protection is the best form of crisis preparedness. The pandemic has taught us how important that is. And that is also true when it comes to dealing with climate shocks. At the same time, social protection is also an important prerequisite to ensure that societies are willing to go along with the changes needed to achieve the climate transformation. A divided society cannot solve collective challenges. That is why I am advocating that in our climate talks, right from the start, we also talk about social protection.”
Minister Schulze will be attending COP27 from 14 to 16 November. Right at the beginning, she will launch the Global Shield against Climate Risks on behalf of the G7 Presidency together with ministers of the Vulnerable Twenty (V20) Group. The Shield is to be part of the response to the challenge of climate-related loss and damage which is being discussed by the international community for the very first time as a main negotiation track at this COP.
