COP 27: The beginning of Africa's ecological transition?

The COP (Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC) is an annual event where leaders of the world meet to agree on policies to mitigate the impacts associated with climate change and temperature rising.

This year the COP 27 takes place in Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt from November 6th to November 18th.

Who is attending the conference?

Among the attendees there are parties (countries delegations), observer states (there are none this year), UN agencies (UNEP, UNDP, CBD), specialized international agencies (WMO, IPCC, GEF), IGO observers (Inter-Governmental Organizations), NGO observers (Non-Governmental Organizations) and the medias.

Observers have the right to speak during the conference but cannot vote on policies. The two observer states are usually the State of Palestine and the Vatican.

For parties, leaders from several countries attended the event, such as Joe Biden, president of the United States, Emmanuel Macron, the French president, the German chancellor Olaf Scholz, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, and the just elected president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil.

Nevertheless, many countries are absent, such as China and Russia but more surprisingly leaders of Canada and Australia are also absent from the conference.

The event became the second most attended conference in COP history with more than 33, 000 delegates. We can also note that the UAE registered the largest delegation with 1, 073 delegates, followed by Brazil and Congo (RDC).

What are the main topics to be covered?

09/11 → Finance Day: Showcase of the different financial instruments accessible to lead a green transition (for companies and countries of the world).

10/11 → Science Day: Conversation to better understand, with the scientists' viewpoint based on solid science, the urgent need for action.

→ Youth & Future Generations Day: Discussion with the Youth Generation to understand their vision of the future and their needs.

11/11 → Decarbonization Day: Since the Paris Agreements, companies aim to reduce their carbon footprint by decarbonizing their activity. This conference will showcase technologies as solutions to reduce carbon present in the atmosphere.

12/11 → Agriculture Day: Show agriculture disasters across the world and the causes related (drought, floods, hurricanes…).

14/11 → Gender Day: Highlights on women’s actions for climate change.

→ Water Day: Talk about water resource management such as drought management and water scarcity more specifically in Africa.

15/11 → Ace & Civil Society Day: This day will have a focus on the role of civil society on global warming.

→ Energy Day: Summary of the various solutions for renewable energy generation, with focus on energy transition and green hydrogen.

16/11 → Biodiversity Day: Awareness on impacts of climate change on oceans, endangered species, coral reefs, protected areas and more broadly on the ecosystem.

17/11 → Solutions Day: During the last day, the COP 27 will bring together all the delegations to find solutions and ideas in order to meet climate change challenges.

Focus on the Building Sector:

During these two weeks, the conference will focus on finding solutions for a greener future, it also means achieving a transition for sustainable cities. In fact, the challenge for a Net Zero future cannot be fulfilled without rethinking the way we build globally and widely, it’s not just about the construction of one building but about the construction of the whole city.

The conference will showcase solutions from private sector and start-ups for sustainable cities, green buildings, and resilient infrastructures to show the importance of these innovations on the way to climate change. However, the COP 27 will also approach the theme of sustainable transport as part of green cities to ensure the wellbeing and health of the inhabitants.