Guterres says climate crisis is out of control at COP31
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Business Day (South Africa)
UN Secretary-General António Guterres says the climate crisis is advancing faster than the international response and calls for faster action. At COP31 in Turkey, nearly 200 countries are negotiating, notably, an increase in electricity’s share of global energy, according to Business Day.
Antonio Guterres warned on Wednesday 11 November at COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, that the slow international response to climate change was putting the world on a path to destruction. The UN Secretary-General called for rapid action and a phase-out of fossil fuels, according to Business Day.
Negotiators from nearly 200 countries are meanwhile seeking to conclude a plan to increase electricity’s share of global energy use and revive efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. A UN report published last month estimates that the world is heading towards exceeding the 1.5°C warming threshold set by the Paris Agreement, according to Business Day.
The UN also reports a succession of extreme events in 2026, including heatwaves in Western Europe and the collapse of a glacier in Nepal that caused flooding and killed more than 1,450 people. The political phase of COP31 opened after the opening of COP31 negotiations on 11 November.
Update of 11 November 2026: At COP31 in Turkey, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Ethiopian counterpart Abiy Ahmed called on wealthy countries to facilitate funding for climate change adaptation in vulnerable countries. Read: COP31 calls for more climate adaptation funding.
Update of 11 November 2026: UN Secretary-General António Guterres accused fossil fuel lobbies of blocking climate negotiations at COP31 and called for $1.3 trillion a year for developing countries. Read: Guterres calls for $1.3 trillion a year for climate at COP31.
