The Minister of Water and Environment, Beatrice Anywar, has confirmed that Uganda will benefit from $792 million (over UGX 2.9 trillion) in climate funds tailored towards climate change disaster loss and damage.
Anywar made the revelation while addressing the media on Uganda’s plans for the 29th UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) on November 7, 2024, at the Uganda Media Centre in Kampala.
According to Anywar, the COP28 saw a breakthrough with the establishment of the loss and damage fund, with developed nations pledging substantial commitments to developing nations that are being heard by climate change disasters, stating that Uganda will advocate for these funds to provide relief and empower communities in building for the future.
“Funding of $792 million was drawn and put in the loss and damage fund; we can go and get that money for our country. But the message to the upcoming COP29 is that the fund must be fully operationalized and accessible for vulnerable nations,” she said.
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She also disclosed plans by Uganda to engage in carbon markets and trading, which is set to be a significant topic of the COP29, fulfilling the country’s vision of developing a dual-energy approach to allow the country to harness renewable energy while ensuring the well-being of its people.
“Uganda should not suddenly be stopped from using the oil discovered in it because it’s termed dirty oil. We should instead guard against the effect of bad use of oil, which we are already doing and are set to get new technologies as we go along,” she added.
The 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), themed In Solidarity for a Green World, will take place in Baku, Azerbaijan, from November 11-22, 2024.
