President Wavel Ramkalawan made a passionate plea to the developed world to help the global South grapple with the effects of climate change. He made this statement at the 5th edition of Austria World Summit (AWS) which took place in Vienna on 1st July 2O21.
President Ramkalawan who was taking part in the High-Level part of the High-Level Forum of that 1-day Summit, explained to host Melinda Crane that developing countries like Seychelles have contributed very little to global warming by way of industrialization but are at the receiving end of climate change brought about by Green House Gas emissions by the developed countries. He called on the developed countries to help developing countries finance their efforts to combat climate change adding that “there’s got to be justice to help the countries that feel the brunt of climate change and pollution”.
Giving the example of Seychelles which has devoted 30% of its Economic Exclusive Zone to conservation and together with Mauritius is protecting the Joint Management Zone whose seabed is covered with the largest swathe of seagrass in the world, the Seychelles Head of State remarked that “we are small but we’re playing our role”. He went on to call on developed countries to “help us” as “the commitment is 100 percent but we want to see action and the time for action is now”. “Bring about the change,” said President Ramkalawan, adding, “We tired of seeing those huge, beautiful figures in statements.”
President Ramkalawan was the only political leader from the global South attending this year’s AWS. He took part in the High-Level Panel alongside world famous figures like the President of Latvia, Egils Levits, the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, member of UK Cabinet and President of CoP26, Alok Sharma, climate activist, Greta Thunberg, primatologist and anthropologist Jane Goodall and the Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans.
This year’s edition of the Austria World Summit was divided into two segments, the High-Level Forum and the Climate Action Stories. Besides the High-Level Panel, the High-Level Forum segment also included an opening session consisting of the keynote address and welcoming remarks, a presentation on the European Green Deal and a section of business transformations and the rewarding of climate action partners. The segment on climate action stories consisted of keynote addresses and sections on the summit’s theme which was healthy planet -healthy people, green economic recovery and lifestyle: the power of consumers.
In his keynote address at the opening of the AWS, the event’s founder and former famous movie actor, Arnold Schwarzeneger, said that communications on climate change needs to be framed differently. He said that the message must not be confusing and must inspire hope, adding that it must be focused on combatting pollution as this is the major pathway to climate change.
On the sidelines of the 5th AWS, President Ramkalawan held bilateral talks with Mr Alok Sharma, the President of CoP26 and gave an interview to UK-based tv network, Skynews.