In the midst of COP 27 held in Egypt, the Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Susana Muhamad, revealed that in Colombia the losses due to the effects of climate change would be $4.3 billion each year.
Based on the result of a study led by the Ministry of the Environment and its Long-Term Climate Strategy of Colombia (E2050), in which natural disasters derived from climate variability phenomena are concentrated, it is estimated that they are becoming stronger changes in the weather.
(See: Loss and damage from extreme weather? Rich and poor countries debate).
In this way, the study reveals that the annual loss due to flooding in Colombia is expected to be $285,777 million, in the same way, Hurricane damage is projected at $5.729 million, while landslides on main roads would amount to around $67,469 million.
The Ministry of Environment, in addition, assures that the losses in droughts would be due to “$22.889 million and $3.9 billion in wildfires”.
In this sense, according to the portfolio, Colombia is the only country in Latin America that has quantified the estimated damages and losses due to climate change.
(See: Why Petro believes that Latino migration to North America will increase).
For this reason, Minister Muhamad stated that, “Colombia proposes that for the issue of financing, an estimate be made of the world debt of developing countries, the multilateral banks, plus the United Nations system, so that they commit to making a reduction in the percentage of the debt immediately. in the year 2023. With this, it seeks to open the fiscal space to implement climate action”.
Similarly, the study reveals that situations around climate affect the different sectors of the economy, such as health, industry, commerce, transport, energy, education, water and sanitation, among others. While on the part of the droughts the affectations would occur in the agricultural sector, especially in products such as corn and rice.
(See: Petro asked for global resources to help the Amazon, at COP 27).
In the case of forest fires, these would generate damage to the ecosystem services provided by forests, the study indicates. Likewise, the hurricanes would affect the construction and vital infrastructure sectors, such as schools, hospitals, housing, among others. It would also cause damage to transportation, energy, and telecommunications.
The Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia, Susana Muhamad.
After revealing the figure at COP 27, Minister Susana Muhamad proposed that in the coming years a restructuring of the international financial system be consolidated in order to respond effectively to the climate crisis.
Consequently, the head of the portfolio considered that by 2023 the climate adaptation fund is adequate to become the loss and damage adaptation fund.
(See: President Gustavo Petro’s speech at COP 27, in Egypt).
Finally, the Minister Muhamad in the middle of the Climate Forward, organized by the The New York Times, reiterated that adaptation, mitigation, loss and damage go hand in hand.
“We must think that when we recover from a disaster we learn the lessons and how we use them to adapt to wait for the next disaster.”, he highlighted.
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