Manila commits to climate action as UN adopts landmark pact
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines, one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, has pledged to actively participate in the implementation of the United Nations' Pact for the Future, a landmark agreement that aims to address pressing global challenges.
The pact, adopted by world leaders without a vote during the Summit of the Future in New York City on September 23 (Manila time), includes commitments to prioritize urgent action on environmental challenges, disaster risk reduction, and ecosystem restoration. These issues that immediately resonate with the Philippines, which has been ranked as the country with the highest disaster risk in 2022.
The Summit of the Future brought together global stakeholders, including representatives from over 1,000 individuals representing nearly 80 countries from September 22 to 23, to discuss the implementation of the Pact for the Future.
The 61-page pact, that includes a Global Digital Compact and a Declaration on Future Generations, covers commitments addressing issues such as peace and security, sustainable development, climate change, digital cooperation, human rights, gender, youth and future generations and the transformation of global governance.
It is a conclusion of an inclusive, years-long process to adapt international cooperation to the navigate present reality and ensure a sustainable and peaceful future.
Philemon Yang (Cameroon), president of the United Nations General Assembly, said the pact “lays the foundation for a sustainable, just, and peaceful global order for all nations and peoples.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres, meanwhile, said, “We cannot create a future fit for our grandchildren with a system built by our grandparents."
Addressing climate issues
One of the actions stipulated in the pact relevant to the Philippines Philippines is the commitment to prioritize urgent action to address critical environment challenges, disaster risk reduction, ecosystem restoration and ensuring a clean sustainable environment.
The agreement included commitment to support effective disaster early warning, early action and crisis response, as well as promotion of a disaster risk-informed approach to sustainable development that integrates disaster risk reduction into policies, programs and investments.
In his statement, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, the head of Philippine Delegation to the Summit of the Future, cited local challenges such conflict, disasters, hunger and displacement are also strains on global humanitarian system and the climate resilience framework.
Prior to the adoption of the pact, Ambassador of the Philippines to the UN Antonio Lagdameo at the ambassadorial-level meeting on the pact in May, said the pact's actions resonate with the national interests of the country as it is responsive to global challenges.
He also said the pact must highlight climate action and the urgent need to tackle loss and damage, citing that the Philippines is one of the most vulnerable countries to the adverse impacts of climate change.
Local concerns as global challenges. At least 3,000 young people in the Philippines, have cited climate change as among their top concerns, according to a recent poll organized by the United Nations.
According to the U-Report poll in June, around 26% of young Filipinos believe that “climate change and natural disasters” will be the biggest problem they will face in the future.
The Pact of the Future seeks to address concerns on climate change, confirming the need to keep global temperature rise to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels and to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Greenpeace International said record temperatures have left a trail of destruction, citing loss of life, failed crops, forests burned, and millions displaced.
In 2023, USAID also said the Philippines is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change such as rising sea levels, high temperatures and increased frequency of typhoons and extreme weather events that can cause floods, damage infrastructure, loss of lives and livelihoods, among others.
The World Risk Index also ranked the Philippines as the country with the highest disaster risk in 2022.
USAID’s report said that without action, the World Bank has estimated the annual economic damages from climate change in the Philippines could reach 13.6% of the country’s domestic product.
Philippines’ pledge
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. supports the UN pact, vowing active participation of the country to ensure a “more climate-resilient future.”
“As the host of the Board of the Loss and Damage fund, the Philippines will work with member states to ensure that the voices of those most affected by climate change shapes the future of international climate policies,” Marcos said in a message to the Summit of the Future Global Call on September 12.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo also reacted positively to the pact, saying it can “guide the UN in delivering meaningful outcomes for peace and security, for human rights, for fairness and equality, for resilience from crises and disasters and for empowering individuals and all communities in the world.”
“The Pact encompasses an agenda where the well-being of present and future generations meet, and where principles and declarations translate into deeds,” he said in a statement.
Manalo’s counterpart in Malaysia, Mohamad Hasan, also echoed the call to protect the needs and interests of the present and future generations amid the climate change, crisis and conflict challenging nations worldwide.
Hasan stressed that the climate crisis “is not a distant threat. "It is here, it is real,” he said.
The Malaysian representative sought for climate financing and a green development pact “that robustly addresses the scientific and technological divide between the North and the South”, as well as a global science fund to “encourage diverse and innovative solutions to the challenges we face, leveraging on our collective human capital.”
The pact highlights the urgency of addressing the $4 trillion financing gap to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and meet global climate targets.
What’s next?
While UN Secretary-General Guterres considers the adoption of the Pact for the Future as a landmark achievement, he still pointed out that it “must garner political will and commitment across all levels of global leadership” to ensure that goals set in the pact are achieved.
The UN said national-level engagement, implementation and accountability are also essential to put the agreements into action.
The Pact for the Future was adopted ahead of the 80th anniversary of UN in 2025.
Heads of state and governments are set to meet at the 83rd session of the General Assembly in 2028 for the comprehensive review of the Pact for the Future in 2028.
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Editor's Note: This report was produced with support from Coalition for the UN We Need, a large global network of civil society organizations focused on the need for a stronger United Nations system. C4UN assists civil organizations and journalists in actively participating in and contributing to the Summit of the Future and the broader discourse surrounding the Pact for the Future.
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