Honourable participants,
Honourable Ms. Vaschchenko, Head of the UNICEF Office,
Dear friends,
More than 140 million children may be forced to move from their homes by 2050, as the result of climate change. Moreover, as a result of the continued increase in temperatures, millions of children around the world will face malnutrition due to the direct impact of temperature changes on agricultural crops.
And as if this were not enough, 1 in 3 children affected by extreme climatic phenomena report trauma and a direct impact on their mental health as a result of these changes.
According to the report to be published today, the environment and climate change constitute three of the five main factors that endanger the health of various diseases in children under 5 years of age, both here in Kosovo and throughout the Western Balkans.
In our country, children face one of the greatest exposures to these climatic extremes. Around 23 percent of children in Kosovo live below the national poverty line, which also affects their access to drinking water, safe water, adequate housing, clean energy and other essential services for their lives and health. Moreover, exposure to heat itself due to rising temperatures has been found to have acute effects on children’s health, even before their birth, potentially leading to premature birth, low birth weight, stillbirth and congenital anomalies. It is estimated that around 10 percent of births in Kosovo are premature, meaning that the baby is born before the 37th week of pregnancy. And one of the reasons that leads to this is precisely the effects of climate change. So, the facts are alarming. The numbers speak loudly, and the reality is clear.
Climate change is having an extremely negative impact on the lives of our children. And this is not a fact that we can deny, because denying this fact today makes confronting this phenomenon even more difficult, and perhaps even totally unsuccessful in the future.
Therefore, I am here today because we need to accept more and more, but above all, to work harder and better.
This is a challenge that knows no borders, a threat that affects us all, and a call to action that can no longer be ignored. Kosovo is unfortunately not exempt from this bitter reality.
We are witnessing the effects of climate change up close every day and more. Our summers are getting hotter, our winters more unpredictable, and the frequency of droughts and floods is increasing, taking its toll across the region and our continent. The number of forest fires is increasing, while the air we breathe is considered to be among the most polluted in Europe and the world. With half of the population under the age of 25, our young people and children are our most valuable asset. They are not just the leaders of tomorrow, they are our partners today. Although they have contributed the least to the problems of climate change, they will inherit the world that we shape through our actions and decisions today. This is no longer just an environmental crisis, it is now a humanitarian crisis. So, let me express my gratitude to UNICEF, who has joined us today to remind us that we must not stop working in this direction for a moment. In the face of climate change, there is no room for pause. We need action today, here and every day, without interruption. It is our duty to empower our children and ensure that they have the necessary tools and the right vision to build a sustainable Kosovo that serves not only their generation, but also the generations that will come after them. I am glad that Kosovo has taken the right direction, that of a green future. Therefore, we must continue to work to transform ourselves from a country almost entirely dependent on coal, to a Kosovo that invests day after day in renewable resources. It is not easy, but it is absolutely necessary, because there is nothing more important than the health of our children. A Kosovo with increasingly innovative, greener and more sustainable energy sectors is becoming a reality day by day. This means that we are building a more innovative, greener and more sustainable future for our youth, for our children. We cannot succeed on this journey alone. Therefore, thank you to all, the amicable states that are present here today and that support every project in this direction. Thank you to everyone for your mobilization and commitment, because on this journey it is not enough to just have the will, because the struggle is fierce and the challenges are numerous.
According to estimates, only $0.03, $0.03 per child is the amount that is allocated for projects that aim to address the challenges that children face as a result of climate change.
Only $0.03 per child. Do the math! While over 80 percent of those most affected by climate change are precisely women and children.
The total budget that today globally goes to support women and children is less than 1 percent. And this is the reality.
Less than 1 percent is spent to support those who suffer most from climate change and who constitute 80 percent of those suffering from climate change. And this is a reality that we must change.
So, it is not at all proportional to what we say or what we aspire to. What is allocated as a fund or project to support children and women.
For Kosovo, this becomes even more challenging, having limited access to international financial mechanisms, which are offered to states to combat climate change. But this should not stop us in our dedication and commitment to change this reality.
Therefore, I believe that today’s report is a turning point for all of us. A reminder that towards the successful realization of the green agenda, we will succeed only when we place the children of Kosovo at the centre of our commitment and the design of daily policies.
There can be no proper future for them, by designing projects and policies without them, without having the interests of children at the centre of each decision-making process.
Therefore, thank you UNICEF for your excellent work, I hope that your report will serve us all as a guide for even more work, smart work, inclusive work and work for the benefit of our children and our future.
Let us ensure together that words are always followed by deeds!
Thank you!
