Climate change: UK appoints champion to support developing countries

Nov 12, 2020

The UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has appointed the former Secretary of State for International Development, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, as United Kingdom's International Champion for supporting developing countries including Uganda to deal with climate change.

In the UN Sustainable Development Goals which are meant to be realised by 2030, goal 13 calls for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

UK was recently chosen to host the major UN climate change summit known as the 26th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26), which is the most important climate summit since the landmark Paris Agreement was agreed at COP21 in 2015.

With one year to go until COP26 is held in Glasgow, the role of the Champion will be to drive forward global ambition and action to support countries on the frontline of climate change to adapt to its impacts and build resilience.

UK noted that Developing countries are particularly vulnerable to climate change and are less able to prepare for and respond to the impacts of rising global temperatures, such as extreme weather events like floods, drought, and wildfires and slow-onset crises like rising sea levels and desertification.

Without action, the World Bank predicts climate change could push more than 100 million people in developing countries below the poverty line by 2030.

The United Kingdom noted that with support their support and support from other development partners, developing countries and communities can adapt and build resilience to the impacts of climate change.

Some of the areas of focus for UK in supporting developing countries will include early warning systems for storms, investing in flood drainage and drought resistant crops, which are extremely cost-effective and saving not just money, but lives and livelihoods.

In Bangladesh, for example, with the support of the UK and others on disaster risk reduction the mortality rate from cyclones has been cut more than 100-fold - from 500,000 deaths in 1970 to 4,234 in 2007.

In her role as Adaptation and Resilience Champion, Anne-Marie Trevelyan will engage the governments of the countries most affected by climate change and drive support from the international community and private sector.

The Climate Ambition Summit will be hosted by the UK, UN and France, alongside partners Italy and Chile, to mark the fifth anniversary of the landmark Paris Agreement and will be an opportunity for world leaders to make ambitious climate commitments. 

Commenting on her appointment, Trevelyan said, "I am delighted to have been appointed Adaptation and Resilience Champion. It is vital the UK's COP Presidency shows the world we are listening to the voices of those most impacted by climate change and that we will lead global action to address their concerns, from loss and damage, to access to finance."

The climate champion optimism in working with UK partners across the globe to represent and drive high ambitions on the adaptation and resilience agenda.

COP26 President Alok Sharma said, "I warmly welcome Anne-Marie Trevelyan to the role of Adaptation and Resilience Champion as we mark the crucial milestone of a year to go until COP26. Her wealth of insight into international development will be invaluable in putting adaptation and resilience at the heart of our efforts to create a fairer, greener and more resilient global economy."

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