WFP's Martin Fricke: Climate change impacts are happening faster than expected

The future impact of climate change is being underestimated, said Martin Fricke, Director of the Global Office of the World Food Programme (WFP), Azernews reports.

Speaking at the session titled "Efforts to Safeguard Health and Food Security in the Face of a Changing Climate" during the COP29 Parliamentary Meeting, organized jointly by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Azerbaijani Parliament, Fricke noted that climate change is advancing more rapidly than expected.

"It’s astonishing how quickly the effects of climate change are catching up with us. I’ve been studying climate change professionally since 2007, and I’ve seen forecasts made in 2017 for the years 2030, 2035, and even 2040. Some of these predictions have already become a reality. Moreover, we seem to be underestimating the scale of future climate impacts," he said.

Fricke also highlighted a growing issue in global food distribution. While it is true that there is enough food in the world today, the problem now lies in its distribution, he explained.

"In wealthier countries, less than 20 percent of the grain produced is used for human consumption. The majority is used as animal feed or for biofuel production," he added.

Vice President of the IPU from Azerbaijan, MP Sevil Mikayilova, is also participating in the COP29 Parliamentary Meeting.

The 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), which runs until November 22, opened at the Baku Olympic Stadium on November 11.

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Rio Earth Summit in June 1992, aimed at preventing dangerous human interference with the climate system. The acronym COP (Conference of Parties) refers to the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change.

A total of 198 countries are parties to the Convention. Unless otherwise decided by the parties, COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn.