“The Mediterranean region is recognized as one of the most vulnerable regions in the world due to climate change.”
About this to Oku.Az Communications Manager of the “Interreg NextMed” program Martin Haybel informed.
According to him, the temperature in the Mediterranean Sea is increasing 20% faster than the world average. This leads to an acceleration of extreme weather events such as heat waves, droughts and floods that cause loss of life and damage to infrastructure. Climate change also affects agriculture and threatens the livelihoods of millions of people in the region.
“Conditions change, the climate changes. Therefore, our way of life must also evolve and we must be able to adapt to these changing conditions,” Haybel stressed.
He added that sea level rise is of particular concern because 42% of the Mediterranean population lives in the coastal area. Experts urge us to prepare now for the situation that may arise 50 years from now.
Global South countries are stepping up their climate ambitions
Martin Haybel believes the UN COP29 climate conference will give a big boost to broader climate change goals, especially for countries in the Global South.
“They start from a different position than, for example, Western countries. But I think they are doing everything possible to accelerate the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources,” said the expert.
According to him, developing countries cannot be asked to achieve in 10 years what developed countries achieved in 50 years. Haybel noted that countries in the Global South are ready to take action on climate change.
The EU works for climate neutrality
“As part of the Green Deal strategy, the European Union has set the ambitious goal of becoming the first climate-neutral continent by 2050.
The EU intends to involve the countries on the other side of the Mediterranean Sea in this process to advance together in the fight against climate change. “Interreg NextMed”, the largest EU-funded initiative to promote regional cooperation in the Mediterranean, plays an important role in achieving this goal, concluded Martin Haybel.
Rufina Abdullayeva
