Talk of the Town: Climate accountability

I remember the news about a certain poor country in Africa where Western countries ask that its people stop using firewood in cooking instead of using electricity not even considering the cost alone. And to think they are the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. This was supposed to stop emitting greenhouse gases into the environment. This shows the insensitivity and hypocrisy of rich countries. They are asking developing and poor countries to limit greenhouse emissions but for economic reasons that would have big ramifications for their people. Indonesia transition from coal to climate-friendly technologies funded by rich countries was a failure. No or little funds from donors.

Rich and newly developed countries who are the biggest polluters on the planet should clean their acts before asking others to do the same. The Philippines’ contribution is 1 percent? Let’s do a simple math. The continent of Africa contributes about (about 54 countries and more than a billion people) 4 percent of the global greenhouse gas emissions but will suffer the most of the climate change. According to Oxfam, the richest 10 percent (810 million people more or less) of the global population is responsible for more than 50 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. The poor will be the ones who suffer the most in the end worldwide.