“We’re right here to reply to a key problem: turning the energy transition towards justice,” mentioned UN Secretary-General António Guterres, asking the individuals at a roundtable dialogue to weigh in on the work of his Panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals.
The panel launched last year at COP28 within the United Arab Emirates with the goal of bringing collectively governments, worldwide organizations, trade and civil society to develop widespread and voluntary ideas to information extractive industries “within the title of justice and sustainability”.
In Baku, the UN chief, who convened in the present day’s occasion, mentioned that the renewables revolution is powering ahead. Final yr – for the primary time – the quantity invested in grids and renewables overtook the quantity spent on fossil fuels.
Previous errors and the push for assets
Demand for the minerals crucial to the transition are anticipated to surge – as governments triple world renewables capability by 2030 – as promised – and part out fossil fuels, Mr. Guterres mentioned.
“For growing international locations wealthy in these assets, this can be a large alternative: to generate prosperity, eradicate poverty and to drive sustainable growth. However too typically this isn’t the case,” he warned, and added: “Too typically we see the errors of the previous repeated in a stampede of greed that crushes the poor.”
We see a rush for assets, with communities exploited, rights trampled, and environments trashed – UN Secretary-Basic António Guterres
Certainly, the push for assets led to the exploitation of native communities exploited, the trampling of rights and the trashing of environments. “We see growing international locations ground-down to the underside of worth chains, as others develop rich on their assets,” mentioned the UN chief.
It was in opposition to the backdrop of this unhappy actuality and calls from growing international locations for motion that the Panel had been established, he mentioned.
The Panel’s newest report identifies seven voluntary ideas and 5 actionable suggestions to embed justice and fairness throughout crucial mineral worth chains.
“These goal to empower communities, create accountability, and be certain that clear power drives equitable and resilient development. That features advancing efforts to make sure most worth is added in resource-rich growing international locations,” the Secretary-Basic defined.
The United Nations system is coming collectively to assist implement the Panel’s findings, working with Member States and different stakeholders to ascertain the advisable High-Level Expert Advisory Group to speed up motion on key financial points, together with profit sharing, worth addition and honest commerce.
Creating international locations within the driver’s seat
The UN chief mentioned that growing international locations will drive this course of with indigenous peoples, native communities, younger folks, civil society, trade and commerce unions current at discussions, alongside governments.
“We can even take ahead the advisable world traceability, transparency and accountability framework for your complete mineral worth chain. It will assist to drive accountable manufacturing, safeguarding human rights and the atmosphere,” he added.
All leaders – in authorities, trade and civil society – ought to be part of the UN and its companions from growing international locations, native communities and past, to perform this activity, Mr. Guterres insisted.
“As demand for crucial power transition minerals surges, so should motion. Collectively, allow us to flip the transition in direction of justice and fairness,” he mentioned.
Extra to comply with
