Talks will go on next year as well!

Perpetual hassles of Technology Transfer in climate talks
By Maya Eralieva

Since 1992 we have been witnessing the red line between developed and developing countries on the issue of technology transfer. Has the real technology transfer occurred? Or developing countries have a right to begging for this technology transfer now in COP-14 and till COP-100!

Let’s see this example of technology transfer from Australia to Kyrgyzstan during early 1990s. The project was to support the poverty reduction through sustained economic generation from cattle farming. Under this project, thousands of Australian sheep transferred through ship from Sydney harbour to Bishkek. Beginning of the project, the Australian sheep start falling in number as they couldn’t adopt to the Kyrgyz climate as well as culture. Kyrgyz people are generally nomadic and they have an intricate relationship with animals. On this suggested transfer of sheep has nothing to do with reduce poverty but toying with spending some amount of money from developed countries. The idea was outdated to transfer the sheep from Australia to Kyrgyz.

Now, during the COP -14 talks, government representatives are asking for technology transfer to combat the climate change. Are the developing member countries waiting for the outdated technology to be transferred to their country like the sheep? Even, the government delegates from developing countries are suggesting that technology transfer should not be only government to government but also private sector has an important role. Again, we hear that private sector has a major role in addressing climate change as we see in Asian Development Bank (ADB) Strategy 2020 which is absolutely to privatize the whole world.

The private sector is looking for dirty technology to be dumped in the poor developing countries for quick or smart result. Although countries will get the technology which is outdated, this can’t resolve the climate catastrophe unless the developed countries drastically reduce their dirty emissions.

The convergence on technology transfer has yet to come in this meeting as developed countries are running away from their responsibility. The talks are not moving in right direction. Although on this COP-14, world is expecting a lot, the leaders have failed to reach that expectations so far.

Interestingly, this COP is negotiated under a special time in our life. The economic crisis, food crisis and environmental crisis has led to eerie silence among the developed countries to commit anything beyond their parochial goal. The developed countries must come out from their hard shell by showing leadership as well as putting some mandatory obligation to private sectors.

The talks are not only complex but there is a gap between what is going on in UN at this moment and on the field.

Photos by Frankie Roul.