COP 30 Malawi delegates encouraged to speak with one voice
Malawian delegates attending the thirtieth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 30), which will be held from 10-21 November in Belèm, Brazil have been urged to be organized and speak with one voice.
Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change, Yusuf Mkungula, made the plea in Lilongwe during the second National Stakeholders preparatory meeting.
Speaking during the meeting, Mkungula encouraged participants to approach COP 30 with a full understanding of Malawi’s position, national priorities, challenges, and gaps as they participate in the negotiations and various multilateral and bilateral engagements.
“When we talk about COP 30 this year, this is one of the milestones because we will be talking about climate finance. Climate finance is about how much resources are going into climate action, and when we talk about climate action is about those countries that are least developed, which are grappling with challenges of climate change,” Mkungula said.
He added, “So we need to prepare effectively to make sure that we have one voice as Malawi. So, we were urging all delegates who will come from Malawi to make sure that they have an understanding to provide possible recommendations for implementation because what is required is how much do we get in terms of the budget and resources.”
“When we talk about accessing the resources, we have had difficulties in terms of how to get significant amounts of money; therefore, we need to advocate for the same,” he said.
On his part, UNDP’s Resilience and Sustainable Growth Portfolio Manager Rabi Gaudo commended the Malawi Government for its strong leadership in coordinating national climate action, which is the very foundation upon which global climate ambition is built.
Gaudo said the preparatory meeting is a vital step in ensuring that Malawi enters the negotiations with a unified, coherent, and impactful voice.
“The impacts of climate change on Malawi are profound and far-reaching. Increasingly frequent droughts, floods, and unpredictable rainfall patterns continue to erode hard-won development gains, threaten food security, and deepen socio-economic inequalities,” Gaudo said.
“These effects weigh most heavily on the most vulnerable among us, that is, women, young people, and marginalized communities. As we look toward COP 30, our shared task is clear: to turn commitments into concrete, sustainable action,” he added.
Gaudo further said that Malawi must move beyond negotiating positions alone and ensure that climate action is visible, measurable, and transformative, adding that solutions being championed must be inclusive, equitable, and innovative, ensuring that no one is left behind.
“COP 30 represents a critical milestone in global climate diplomacy. It will set the trajectory for the next decade of climate action, guided by the enhanced ambition of the third cycle of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
For Malawi, this is an opportunity not only to present its revised NDCs but also to show how our strategies are both aligned with global targets and rooted in national realities,” Gaudo said.
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