Davis to Hold World Leaders Accountable for Climate Change Threat to the Bahamas

Prime Minister Philip Davis said he will ensure developed countries pay for the calamitous effect of climate change on the Bahamas.

After his arrival on Sunday, Davis said that the country’s voice will be heard at the COP26 Summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in what has been called a make-or-break opportunity to save the planet.

“I want them to see what yesterday was for us and what tomorrow could be like for them, and to motivate them to do more for Small Island Developing States like us, because the cost to adapt and to mitigate in respect to the consequence of climate change is humongous and beyond our means in many, many respects.

“We want to be able to sensitize them to that and we need our voices heard to ensure that they pay for what has happened to small island states like us.

“We are not going to leave here without having a clear understanding of what we will get for what they would have done to us.”

Why it matters

Small Island States like the Bahamas, have suffered due to global warming. The intensity of storms throughout the years, like Hurricane Dorian in 2019, has been worsened by global warming, according to experts.

Scientists say storms draw their energy from ocean heat and more than 90 percent of the heat is trapped by greenhouse gas emissions, stored in the ocean. Storms then intensify quickly and become powerful.

The big picture

Countries like China, the United States of America, India and Germany are the biggest contributors of greenhouse gases, accounting for 80% of gas emissions.

World leaders met in Rome over the weekend for the G20 meeting with a goal to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. However, no date was set.

State of Play

US Congress is wrangling over how to finance its climate change pledge and whether or not the US can regulate greenhouse gas emissions.