Millions at risk of falling into poverty: Oxfam Canada comments on World Bank report

Oxfam commends the World Bank for connecting the need to tackle climate change with the urgent fight to end poverty. In a new report, called Shock Waves: Managing the Impacts of Climate Change on Poverty, the Bank warns that more than 100 million additional people could be pushed into poverty by crop failures, floods, hunger, and other shocks caused by climate change.

Oxfam Canada’s Executive Director, Julie Delahanty, said:  "This report further highlights what Oxfam has been warning for many years: climate change is exacerbating inequality and increasing poverty, and hitting poor rural women the hardest.

"We welcome the World Bank's report, and applaud them for researching this important connection between poverty and climate change. We look forward to seeing how the World Bank will integrate its research into its own practices as well.

"In order to address some of the issues raised in its research, the World Bank will need to review its practices and implement policies and procedures that support equitable, low carbon development, and that work with women and men to make communities more resilient to climate change."

The report adds urgency to the need for an ambitious and durable climate agreement in Paris that addresses the needs of poor and vulnerable communities as they build low-carbon, climate-resilient economies.

Delahanty said: "Canada walked away from the climate change table but this December our new Government has a chance to make a difference on climate change and on Canada’s response. We need to see bold action in Paris so that any climate deal meets the needs of the world’s poorest people – in particular rural women and their families, many of whom are already going hungry because of climate change."

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Notes to editors:

Oxfam urges the Government of Canada to act swiftly on climate change and prioritize the following at COP:

• Immediate scale up of support to women farmers – those hit hardest and most often by the impact of the changing climate.
• A commitment from Canada to fulfill our fair share of the promised $100bn a year in international climate finance; to increase policy dialogue with women on the use of climate financing; and to scale up gender responsive climate finance projects.
• A deal that has a collective goal to fairly phase-out all fossil fuel emissions and phase-in 100% renewable energy by mid-century, including Canada’s agreement to phase out coal production by 2030.

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