The Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) has called on world leaders to adopt a binding roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels.
The foundation made the call at the 31st UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye.
HOMEF said the first three days of negotiations has exposed the gap between diplomatic commitments and the realities of climate change facing vulnerable communities.
The foundation made the call in a statement, quoting its Executive Director, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, as expressing concern over what it described as the continued influence of fossil fuel interests on climate negotiations.
Bassey said the proposed 35×35 electrification pledge, which sought to raise electricity’s share of total energy consumption to 35 per cent by 2035, would achieve little without a commitment to renewable energy sources.
He argued that increasing electricity consumption without addressing its sources could undermine efforts to tackle climate change.
“We cannot electrify our way out of a climate crisis while we continue to pour oil and gas into the destruction engine,” he said.
Bassey also accused fossil fuel-producing countries of resisting provisions that would require a shift away from oil and gas.
He urged COP31 delegates to move beyond voluntary commitments and agree on a binding framework for ending fossil fuel extraction.
“Climate justice is not found in voluntary roadmaps that oil lobbyists can ignore; it is found in the courage to stop the extraction,” he said.
The HOMEF executive director further called for the Belém-Antalya Mechanism (BAM) to be strengthened into an enforceable framework for translating climate agreements into concrete action.
He said the mechanism should go beyond collecting climate data to ensuring that commitments, principles and historical responsibilities agreed upon in Belém were implemented.
On climate finance, Bassey called for grants rather than loans to support developing countries in addressing climate change.
He said providing loans to countries least responsible for the climate crisis would further worsen their economic difficulties.
According to him, climate finance should prioritise public funding for mitigation and adaptation rather than projects serving private commercial interests.
HOMEF said the negotiations should also establish an equitable pathway for phasing out coal, oil and gas, beginning with immediate action.
It warned that the window for meaningful climate intervention was narrowing ahead of the 2028 global stocktake.
The foundation maintained that climate action must prioritise vulnerable communities, environmental protection and public welfare over fossil fuel profits. (NAN)
