Glasgow, 3 November 2021 – The President of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA), H.E. Mr. Abdulla Shahid, concluded his 4-day official visit to the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow.
The PGA delivered remarks at the formal Opening of the COP26, where he emphasized that humanity had the capacity to tackle the climate crisis but lacked the will to deliver. The PGA also relayed messages from the General Assembly High-Level Dialogue on Delivering Climate Action which took place on 26th Oct at the UN Headquarters in New York. At the event, Member States called for reliable access to finance, technology transfer, and support for adaptation.
On day 2 of COP26, the PGA joined other world leaders at the World Leaders Summit. The President spoke with Heads of State and Government, and Ministers, from a number of countries, including Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Barbados, Brunei, Canada, Comoros, Egypt, Fiji, Guinea Bissau, India, Kuwait, Malawi, Maldives, Namibia, Palau, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, the UAE, Zimbabwe, as well as the European Commission.
The President held bilateral discussions with H.E. Lazarus Chakwera, President of Malawi (Chair of LDC Group); Germany’s State Secretary, Jochen Flasbarth; H.E. Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Special Envoy for Climate; Lord Karan Bilimoria, Chancellor, University of Birmingham; Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the UK’s Minister of State (South Asia, United Nations and the Commonwealth); Seve Paeniu, Minister of Finance and Climate Change of Tuvalu; Henry Puna, Secretary-General of the Pacific Island Forum; Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC; and Andrew Furey, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
In addition, the President held a roundtable discussion with YOUNGO, the youth constituency of the UNFCCC; met with youth representatives from both UAE and the Maldives; and held a special discussion with women scientists of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to discuss the obstacles to women and girl’s participation in climate science and policy.
On day 3, The President spoke at the AOSIS Leaders Dialogue on the morning of the 2 November, where he joined Small Island States in reiterating the need for reliable and adequate climate finance and support to adaptation.
President Shahid welcomed the announcement on an end to deforestation by 2030. Likewise, the President welcomed the pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030, noting that these were constructive and concrete steps to maintain the 1.5 target.
President Shahid spoke with several media outlets during his visit, including Deutsche Welle, Al-Jazeera, Bloomberg, Sky News Arabia, Public Service Media of Maldives, Doordharshan News, and CNBC. The President also participated in the ‘Net Zero World’ documentary.
Prior to departure, the President toured the Green Zone – the public venue of COP26 – and met with Alman, a young boy from the Maldives who had created a viral video on the need for climate action.
Commenting on the state of negotiations and COP26, President Shahid noted:
“I leave Glasgow with cautious optimism; COP26 needs to reignite hope for people everywhere by recommitting to 1.5, by fleshing out details on how we will get there. The people of the world sense the urgency, now they need to know we have a clear pathway and timeline. I believe we are seeing that come together. The announcements on deforestation and on methane, combined with calls for finance, adaptation and net zero targets, are signs of progress.”