The Minister of Planning and Economic Development of Sierra Leone Kenyeh Barlay, who doubles as chair of the g7+ has on the 3rd December 2023 advocated for bold climate measures for conflict-affected nations at the COP28 event in Dubai.

Her speech was focused on “Building Resilience through scaling up climate action in fragile and conflict-affected settings”. She commended the launch of ‘Relief, Recovery, and Peace’ Day, emphasizing its significance for those living in contexts of conflict, fragility, and vulnerability within the g7+ group, adding that, the historical lack of decisive international action, attributing it to economic interests are hindering developed countries from reaching consensus on carbon emission targets.

Giving out the  aspirations of the g7+, she presented a four-point agenda. Firstly, she called for the COP28 Declaration to contribute to the global discourse on building resilience through accelerated actions and financing. Secondly, she advocated for a nexus approach, integrating considerations for peace, stability, and institutions. Thirdly, she highlighted the need for increased financial resources for fragile countries, addressing the severe financing gap they face.

She stressed on climate-smart agriculture, climate-resilient infrastructure, citizen-centric governance, and social spending to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change in fragile and conflict-affected countries.