How did the DRC use its natural resources, such as oil reserves and rainforests, to gain leverage in international climate negotiations?
DRC announced an auction for oil and gas leasing rights to thirty parcels of land across its territory which covered 800,000 square kilometers. It later allowed bids from carbon credits and cryptocurrency companies.
What role did multilateral coordination (e.g., with REDD+, the Coalition for Rainforest Nations, Brazil, and Indonesia) play in strengthening the DRC’s bargaining power?
Multilateral coordination strengthened DRC’s bargaining power in various ways. For instance, DRC collaborated with REDD+ which provides financial incentives for reducing carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. Second, it collaborated with other countries in the Coalition for Rainforest Nations such as Brazil and Indonesia. This collaboration enabled DRC to amplify its voice in climate negotiations and hailed forest conservation as a global public good that requires international funding.
How does the concept of loss and damage relate to the DRC’s strategy and the broader Global South climate finance debate?
DRC and like other countries in the Global South contribute the least to the GHG emissions. However, it faces huge devastating impacts of climate change such as flooding. By amplifying voice about such inequities, DRC aligns itself with the entire Global South to demand for climate finance mechanisms such as the Loss and Damage Fund that is aimed at compensating vulnerable nations for the adverse climate change impacts caused largely by the developed nations.