|
The
latest round of
UN-sponsored global climate change negotiations kicked off on August
20, 2008, in Accra, the capital of Ghana, according to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) press
release.
More
than 1,600
participants, including government delegates from 160 countries and
representatives from business and industry, environmental
organizations and research institutions, are attending the one-week
meet.
The
"UN Climate Change
Talks - Accra, 2008" constitute the third major UNFCCC negotiating
session this year to get to an agreement on strengthened long-term
cooperative action on climate change. The deal is to be clinched in
December 2009 in Copenhagen.
The
Accra talks were
opened by Ghanaian President John Kufuor, who pointed to the fact
that the northern part of his country in particular has been
witnessing both serious drought and flooding in recent times.
In
Ghana, rainfall has
decreased by 20% over the past 30 years, while up to 1,000 sq km of
land may be lost in the Volta Delta due to sea-level rise and
inundation should greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise at the
current pace.
"There
is a real need
for strengthening the capacity of countries, particularly in Africa,
in coping with such climate shocks," the president was quoted as
saying. "I would therefore like to call for an international deal
or 'compact,' in which developing countries commit to plan for
climate resilient development. In return the international community
should commit to provide adequate, predictable, long-term funding and
support in terms of technology transfer and capacity building," he
added. (Source: Xinhua)
August 22, 2008
|
