๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ ๐๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ง๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ ๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง
DECEMBER 1: (L-R) Antรณnio Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General, His Majesty King Tupou VI, King of the Kingdom of Tonga and His Highness Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi during the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 at Expo City Dubai on December 1, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by COP28 / Christopher Pike)
1 December 2023
Dubai UAE – Nature, people, lives and livelihoods must be at the heart of climate action. That was the message from the King of Tonga, His Majesty King Tupou VI, to world leaders and delegates at the 28th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP28) in Dubai, UAE.
His Majesty King Tupou VI was the first Pacific leader to address the High-Level plenary at the World Climate Action Summit at COP28 and reminded the meeting about the lived reality of the climate crisis for Pacific countries.
โThe far-reaching impacts of climate change and disasters on human security and mobility displaces more than 50,000 Pacific people every year, due to climate and disaster related events,โ His Majesty King Tupou VI said.
โIt is painful for the people of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to see that COP28 may not be the milestone moment we had all been hoping for because our slow progress on the Paris Agreement.โ
The Kingdom of Tonga is amongst Pacific countries at the immediate forefront of climate change impacts where cyclones, earthquakes, flooding, volcanic eruptions, storm surges, droughts and tsunamis, amongst other weather-related calamities, is their โlived reality.โ
