10 Oct, 2007

Climate Change: Developed Countries Under Pressure To Do More

Imtiaz Muqbil

The third of a five-part series summarising the high-level presentations at the special UN session on 24 Sept 2007 under the theme: “The Future in Our Hands: Addressing The Leadership Challenge Of Climate Change”.

CLIMATE CHANGE: DEVELOPED COUNTRIES UNDER PRESSURE TO DO MORE (Part 3 of 5)

This is the third of a five-part series summarising the high-level presentations at the special UN session on 24 Sept 2007 under the theme: “The Future in Our Hands: Addressing The Leadership Challenge Of Climate Change”. The statements by some of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members and island nations indicate a strong consensus that as the industrialised countries have long been the heaviest polluters, they must bear the lion’s share of the burden for fixing the problem. In diplomatic-speak, this is referred to as the “principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.” How these responsibilities are to be borne in future will be subject of the upcoming negotiating conference in Bali.

In this series of dispatches, the statements delivered at the UN session have been edited down to keypoints and quotes, saving my readers time in downloading and wading through reams of often repetitive and boring verbiage. The first two sets of statements were covered in TIN Editions 56 and 57. The next two final dispatches will cover the views of the oil-producing countries and the industrialized countries. Groundbreaking journalism and service to the travel & tourism industry, only from Travel Impact Newswire.

1. DR. SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO, PRESIDENT OF INDONESIA: Forestry initiatives deserve stronger support and more meaningful incentives

2. DATO’ SERI SYED HAMID ALBAR, FOREIGN MINISTER OF MALAYSIA: Funds come with conditionalities that make it impossible for some developing countries to receive any financing

3. ANGELO T. REYES, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, THE PHILIPPINES: Ideal scenario would be for a replication of the technological revolution that changed the telecommunications landscape

4. GEN. SURAYUD CHULANONT (RET.), PRIME MINISTER OF Thailand: Our general message is one of promoting self-immunity and resilience in the face of challenges

5. GEORGE YEO, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS, SINGAPORE: Even a small patch of tropical forest in Singapore has more biodiversity than large parts of Europe or North America.

6. PRINCE MOHAMED BOLKIAH, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, BRUNEI DARUSSALAM: The biggest need we have is to get the people at home fully on our side

7. DR. THONGLOUN SISOULITH, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, LAO PDR: We are planning to establish 500,000 hectares of new tree plantations by 2020

8. DR. MOK MARETH, SENIOR MINISTER, MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, CAMBODIA: Countries should not be held responsible for problems they have not caused

9. MAHINDA RAJAPAKSA, PRESIDENT OF SRI LANKA: A value must be placed on maintaining forest cover

10. ABDULLA SHAHID, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, MALDIVES: International financial support for innovation and adaptation is inadequate and fragmented

11. TAVAU TEII, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT, TUVALU: The poor and vulnerable must be the primary recipients of the Adaptation Funds

12. PATRICK VAHOE JNR., MINISTER FOR COMMUNICATION, AVIATION & METEOROLOGY, SOLOMON ISLANDS: The cost of doing nothing will be at the expense of our children’s children future

13. GEORGE ANDRE WELL, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, VANUATU: Unlike terrorism, climate change has a universal target

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1. DR. SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO, PRESIDENT OF INDONESIA: Forestry initiatives deserve stronger support and more meaningful incentives

The question is whether we have the sense of urgency to make the necessary choices and take the crucial initiatives that will curb global warming. I believe we can. And we will. But first we must dare to think outside the box. We must all recalibrate our perspectives and adopt a fresh approach. While we uphold the principle of “common and differentiated responsibilities,” let us all do more and do things differently. I am heartened at the recent Vienna Climate Talk, where Parties to the Kyoto Protocol finally recognized the need for industrialized countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 to 40 percent by 2020 compared to 1990 levels.

There are local entities that are pursuing bold mitigation targets that far exceed national, regional and international targets. Their message to the world is clear: you do need not wait for the signing of a global consensus to do more to reduce greenhouse emissions.

We the developing countries can also do more. We should create building blocks in the form of innovative and forward-looking national strategies covering mitigation and adaptation, while taking advantage of the opportunities opened by emerging low-carbon economic incentives. These building blocks should take into account market mechanisms and other enabling mechanisms such as fiscal and regulatory approaches that can reduce the cost of mitigation and help mobilize the required investments.

What we need most is technology. We must figure out how developing nations can obtain that technology — either from the developed countries or from one another. In this regard, APEC has done right to establish an Asia-Pacific Network for Energy Technology. Indonesia and Norway have developed cooperation on carbon sequestration technology to reduce emissions from our oil drilling.

We should also look closely into mitigation opportunities by conserving, preserving and expanding the world’s carbon sinks contained in our forests. Indonesia has taken the initiative of launching a Special Leaders’ Meeting of Tropical Rainforest Countries today here in New York, where countries blessed with large tracts of tropical rainforests will gather and formulate a constructive proposal to strengthen the role of forests in reducing global warming.

We are doing this as a moral imperative and a matter of national interest. And because these tropical rainforests serve a critically strategic role as our planet’s carbon sinks, the so-called “lungs of the earth”, these forestry initiatives deserve stronger support and more meaningful incentives. Let us therefore encourage the carbon market to give a better price for each ton of carbon saved. Let us also encourage multinational companies to support the endeavours of rainforest countries at reforestation and preventing deforestation.

Indonesia is working closely with Australia, South Korea and the United States in promoting reforestation in Kalimantan and Sumatra. We are also cooperating closely with Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam in the “Heart of Borneo” project, which covers some 22 million square kilometers of lush tropical rain forests.

There is an array of mitigation options that we must explore — including increased energy efficiency, nuclear power, biomass energy and other forms of fuel substitution. We have all the technology. What we need is the right attitude — the optimism to give technology a chance to work wonders.

We must pay attention to the plight of small island states. They cannot simply build seawalls like The Netherlands has done to protect their citizens from rising sea level. They must rely on the support of the international community to avoid disappearing in a watery grave. Around these small islands is a vast expanse of coral reefs that will be severely affected by the warming of the oceans. This is the Coral Reef Triangle, covering an area of 5.7 million square kms, stretching from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and Solomon Islands. It is home to over 70 percent of the world’s coral species, and is the source of livelihood of over 120 million people.

Indonesia has launched the Coral Triangle Initiative for Corals, Fisheries and Food Security. I am grateful that APEC is supporting this initiative. At the forthcoming 13th Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Third Meeting of Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, which will both be held in Bali in December, we will have the opportunity to assure present and future generations that their prospects have not been dimmed by climate change. We can give that assurance if we have the political will to meet an enormous moral obligation with a sincere heart.

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2. DATO’ SERI SYED HAMID ALBAR, FOREIGN MINISTER OF MALAYSIA: Funds come with conditionalities that make it impossible for some developing countries to receive any financing

Malaysia believes that while the developing countries should also take the necessary measures to mitigate the effects of climate change in their countries, the developed world must do more in tackling the issue especially in financing these measures. This is one of the most important aspects of operationalising the principle of historical responsibility and the principle of common but differentiated responsibility. The developed countries have the responsibility to provide the means to developing countries to address climate change because of: (1) the overwhelming historical contribution of the rich countries to the stock of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere; and (2) the much greater resources and capacity that the rich countries have.

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol rightly call on the developed countries to contribute financial resources to developing countries, whose capacity to implement their policies to combat climate change is linked to the amount of financial resources available. The less financial resources that are made available to developing countries, the lower would be their ability to play their role in fighting the adverse effects of climate change.

This principle that links the developing countries’ contribution to combat climate change to the developed countries’ contribution in terms of transfer of financial resources and technology must continue to be maintained in any post-2012 climate regime that the world is developing. Taking national measures to address climate change is a very expensive exercise that, if wrongly carried out, will be at the expense of the developing countries’ economic and social development.

The developing countries are told that to combat climate change, they have to first undertake radical changes in mitigation – we have to change our systems of energy, transport, industry, agriculture and even housing so that they will all emit less carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. These are in fact very expensive endeavours for any developing country to undertake..

This is why it is difficult, if not impossible, for the developing countries to commit legally binding targets to curb greenhouse gases. We do not know whether we can carry out the massive transformation suggested without sacrificing our development goals which are sorely needed by our people. We call upon the developed countries to take the lead on finance and economic issues so that confidence can be built in our negotiations for a post-2012 climate regime.

Although much has been said about the need for more financing in efforts to combat climate change, the sad fact is, this has not been forthcoming. Many of the funds set up for these purposes come with conditionality that sometimes renders it impossible for some of the developing countries to receive any financing.

Malaysia calls for an easy access to the existing world environment funds. Malaysia also wishes to see an early operationalisation of the Adaptation Fund currently being worked out under the Kyoto Protocol. In addition to that, a large fund, financed by the developed countries, must be established to aid the developing countries. To be credible, this fund must be big enough. A fund should also be set up to help developing countries to undertake reconstruction and rehabilitation measures following major disruptive climatic events. For mitigation activities, such as to redesign production and transport systems to be more climate-friendly, appropriate funds should also be made available. The developed countries therefore must commit themselves to provide financing and technology to the developing world; otherwise we will not be able to have an effective post-2012 regime.

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3. ANGELO T. REYES, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, THE PHILIPPINES: Ideal scenario would be for a replication of the technological revolution that changed the telecommunications landscape

Our watersheds, which contain the country’s forests and a significant portion of its biodiversity are expected to be adversely affected by climate change. Downstream effects include impact on about 1.5 million sq. kms of agricultural land getting irrigation water from these watersheds. A third of the country’s total population living in the uplands of these watersheds and depending on them for sustenance, also stand to be directly affected. So will our wetlands covering roughly 14,100 sq. kms and comprising about 22 lakes, 8 freshwater swamps and marshes, and 61 coastal wetlands.

Mitigation may be viewed as a longer range challenge, while adaptation is more of an immediate concern. Both areas require widespread information dissemination activities to impress across all sectors in the country the urgent and important need to address climate change.

In the field of renewable energy, the Philippines remains among the most significant users of geothermal power. But, as a tropical archipelago with a combined coastline twice that of the United States, our nation has barely scratched the surface in terms of harnessing the tremendous energy potential of solar heat, ocean waves and monsoon winds.

The Philippines is committed to pursuing its climate change program consistent with the global principle that recognizes the need to provide for an expanded, effective and fully functioning market mechanism for carbon trading given diverse approaches on domestic actions adopted by individual member countries in accordance to the UNFCCC principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities.”

The research and development capabilities of the private sector must be tapped. The ideal scenario would be for a replication of the technological revolution that changed the telecommunications landscape. Today, many of us would probably find it difficult to reconstruct what life was like without mobile phones. Can you imagine how much richer our quality of life would be if cleaner, more affordable energy can be just as accessible?

Renewable energy sources are not yet as cost-efficient as traditional power plants. But, in time, one vendor will make a breakthrough that would open the floodgates to a raft of fresh innovations. The urgency of cobbling a global response gives us optimism that R&D in energy and related fields should take on a more collaborative — and less proprietary — character. This not the time for each of us to think as competing states but as co-stewards of a shared and endangered planet.

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4. GEN. SURAYUD CHULANONT (RET.), PRIME MINISTER OF Thailand: Our general message is one of promoting self-immunity and resilience in the face of challenges

Within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the debate is one of “common but differentiated responsibilities”. As we look forward to the crucial Bali meeting, each nation’s effort is a jigsaw part of the global picture. If one piece is left out, the picture is incomplete.

Thailand has responded to rising sea levels and coastal encroachment by building coastal defences, as well as through natural means of regenerating our mangrove forests. We are also responding to the ever more vicious circle of flood and drought through a comprehensive water management strategy.

Our general message is one of promoting self-immunity and resilience in the face of challenges, in line with the philosophy of His Majesty the King, which is reflected in our current National Economic and Social Development Plan. Through the New Theory in agriculture, we are encouraging farmers to promote sustainability by engaging in mixed cropping alongside income generating activities, rather than relying on a single cash crop. Thus, we are reducing vulnerability to crop failure and other threats.

This year, we have launched our National Strategic Plan on Climate Change, covering all aspects of climate change policy formulation, including adaptation, mitigation of greenhouse gases, research and development, and implementation of the UNFCCC. We also look forward to cooperation through our recently-established Thailand Greenhouse Gas Organization. Already, various biomass and biogas Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects have been approved.

As fossil fuels will remain dominant in the energy mix of developing countries in the next two decades, countries like Thailand need to obtain new technologies that will enable them to move from low-cost carbon technologies to more advanced and cleaner ones. Thailand, therefore, supports the Sydney APEC Leaders’ Declaration on Climate Change, Energy Security and Clean Development that calls for the international community’s support for effective adaptation strategies, including through appropriate policy exchanges, finance, capacity building and technology transfer. We are seeking support for clean coal R&D and technology transfer.

As a major rice producer, Thailand would like to call on rice growing nations as well as various international institutes to focus their R&D activities on methane capture technologies. This would help ensure the productivity and affordability of grains to feed the world’s growing population and reinforce global food security.

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5. GEORGE YEO, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS, SINGAPORE: Even a small patch of tropical forest in Singapore has more biodiversity than large parts of Europe or North America.

The recent APEC Summit issued a Leaders’ declaration on climate change which, though not binding, set high aspirations. Without collective action to reduce carbon emission, we will fail. That was the weakness of Kyoto. We need the US as the world’s biggest emitter to take the lead. Increasingly, China and India will need to be involved as well as they are becoming big emitters because of huge populations. In November, the East Asia Summit and the ASEAN-EU Summit, both to be held in Singapore, will also have climate change high up on the agenda.

The political will expressed by leaders should be translated into an effective plan of action at the coming UNFCCC meeting in Bali. Any new global framework must observe the key principles already articulated in the UNFCCC. Developed countries must continue to take the lead on reducing emissions. Developing countries should be encouraged to reduce their carbon emissions based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and their respective capabilities, and in a manner which does not stifle their economic growth.

Reducing carbon emission is half the equation in reducing greenhouse gases. The other half is increasing carbon capture. In Sydney, APEC member countries resolved to increase forest cover in the region. The initiative to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD), especially the promotion of sustainable forest management, is important.

Tropical forests and marine ecosystems play an important role. We must protect them. At the National Institute of Amazonia Research (INPA) in Manaus recently, I was given a briefing on the influence of El Nino on the health of the Amazon forest. In 1997/98 when the El Nino effect was at its worst in decades, forest fires in Southeast Asia released 700 million metric tons of C02 to the atmosphere, according to some experts. Last year which was a weak El Nino year, more than 8 million hectares of forest was destroyed by fire in the month of September alone.

Prescriptions by developed countries to developing countries on carbon emissions are sometimes perceived as self serving. We cannot ignore developmental needs. Unless the system encourages local inhabitants to protect trees instead of chopping them down, the problem of deforestation cannot be solved. There must be assistance by developed countries in resources and expertise. However, there must also be a system of surveillance and control to ensure that money is properly used and not channelled into the wrong hands.

Mangrove swamps are ideal for aquaculture provided there is proper control on the use of chemicals and the disposal of wastes. Even a small patch of tropical forest in Singapore has more biodiversity than large parts of Europe or North America. It has been estimated that tropical forests in Southeast Asia, Africa and South America contain more than 50% of all the plant and animal species on our planet.

The Heart of Borneo initiative deserves our full support. It covers 220,000 sq km of land in Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. Brunei, which is not a big country, played a leading role and set aside 58% of its total land area for this initiative which is a magnificent contribution. The island of Borneo is home to 13 species of primates, 150 species of reptiles and amphibians, and over 350 species of birds and 15,000 species of plants.

In Sumatra, Singapore and Malaysia are working with neighbouring Indonesian provinces to tackle peatland fires and develop sustainable land-clearing practices. We in Southeast Asia can learn much from the experience of the Amazonian region where considerable research has been done and which now has a comprehensive system of surveillance.

We have to engage the private sector and establish regulatory frameworks which bring positive market forces into play. Technology can solve many of the problems we face but the right incentives must be in place. We need the help of local communities as well. NGOs can play a very positive role monitoring progress and blowing whistles. Without passion and persistence, and a sense of the whole earth, we will not be able to overcome the resistance to effective action.

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6. PRINCE MOHAMED BOLKIAH, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, BRUNEI DARUSSALAM: The biggest need we have is to get the people at home fully on our side

We have had many meetings this year about climate change. The last major meeting was earlier the APEC Summit in Sydney. APEC came up with a strong Declaration, very clear, well thought-out, and not too technical. That was very good but the other impression we had was not so encouraging. We got a feeling that we were lacking a lot back home – resources, ideas and basic understanding.

By that, I do not mean at Government Level. We have a longstanding conservation policy and we have done a great deal to protect our environment. That, however, does not solve our biggest problem – getting more understanding and awareness among our people.

Climate change is very complex and sometimes very confusing but, even so, we badly need our people to become involved in finding solutions and that is much easier said than done. Our people do not know enough about the subject and they need to learn it very quickly indeed because it gives them knowledge and, from that, they develop understanding and then, in the end, everyone is involved. In that way, we find the ideas we need and the best approach.

That is what we are working on at the moment, not just in schools but also in trying to build up confidence in every sector: public, private, and, above all, young people. That is what I think is really meant by “adaptation”. We would certainly welcome any assistance from outside experts, especially to teach us new skills and share their modern technology. We certainly want to adapt but it has to be a joint effort and the biggest need we have is to get the people at home fully on our side.

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7. DR. THONGLOUN SISOULITH, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, LAO PDR: We are planning to establish 500,000 hectares of new tree plantations by 2020

All Member States must reaffirm their commitment to the UNFCCC by doubling their efforts to mitigate the effects of this colossal impediment to sustainable development. However, the implementation of Convention should be based on the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities.” It is recognized that while all countries have an interest in controlling climate change, the developed world should lead the way by taking immediate domestic actions in reducing harmful gas emissions.

LDCs and SIDS find it difficult to afford adaptation, due to their limited financial and technical capacities, high rates of poverty and dire records of socio-economic development. Therefore, both financial and technical assistance should be forthcoming from the international community.

As a Least Developed Country, the Lao PDR emits a relatively negligible amount of greenhouse gases. Over the past years the forestry area in the Lao PDR has reached 11.2 million hectares in 2005, while wood exploitation has declined by 50%. The practice of shifting cultivation which has contributed to global warming declined from 118,900 hectares in 2001 to 29,400 hectares in 2005. The Lao PDR also maintains 20 internationally recognized National Protected Areas consisting of large tracts of tropical monsoon forest and diverse wildlife populations that cover almost 3.4 million hectares or more than 14 percent of the country.

The Lao Government is implementing plans and strategies to establish 500,000 hectares of new tree plantations by 2020, increasing the ratio of green areas to 55 percent of all natural areas, putting an end to slash-and-burn cultivation by 2010 and reducing carbon dioxide emissions from all sources as well as the consumption of ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons.

New initiatives and approaches should be within the framework of the United Nations and maintain the commitments made under the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol, undertaken at the Rio and Johannesburg Conferences including Agenda 21. We also stress the need for all member states that have not done so to ratify and implement the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol.

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8. DR. MOK MARETH, SENIOR MINISTER, MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, CAMBODIA: Countries should not be held responsible for problems they have not caused

The impacts of climate change, in particular, floods and droughts, have caused serious impacts on the economy, the environment and people’s livelihoods.

(Cambodia has prepared) a National Adaptation Programme of Action to Climate Change (NAPA) to help adapt to the impacts of climate change as well as to achieve Cambodia’s MDGs under climate change conditions. Our next challenge is to mobilise resources for the implementation of this NAPA. Because of the limited financial and technical capacities of most LDCs, we would like to ask all Parties to urgently provide funding support under simplified procedures to implement adaptation measures in the LDCs, in particular, those with immediate and direct impacts on the livelihoods of vulnerable communities.

There is a need for international consensus on the scope of adaptation and means to enhance the availability of, and access to adaptation funds. Existing funds theoretically available for LDCs, such as the LDC Fund, the Special Climate Change, and the Adaptation Fund, are very small comparing to the required costs of adaptation for developing countries. Furthermore, there are no clear guidelines and difficulties in accessing these many, but poorly coordinated and fragmented funding mechanisms. As for the yet to-be-operational Adaptation Fund, we believe that CDM projects should not have to be burdened by mandatory proceeds to this Fund as they already contribute to sustainable development.

Regarding the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Trust Fund, complex rules and requirements, such as “incremental cost”, limit access of LDCs to it, for adaptation projects. It is our understanding that currently funds from GEF Resource Allocation Framework (RAF) cannot be used for adaptation activities as they “do not directly benefit the global environment “. From the ethical point of view, countries should not be held responsible for problems they have not caused but instead be funded on an unconditional, full-cost basis to adapt to climate change. Therefore, the relevance of the GEF principle of “incremental cost” should be reexamined, in particular, for adaptation projects. There is also a need to improve cooperation and coordination among GEF Agencies and to harmonise their rules and procedures over GEF funded projects to allow genuine country driveness (sic), ownership, accountability and sustainability.

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9. MAHINDA RAJAPAKSA, PRESIDENT OF SRI LANKA: A value must be placed on maintaining forest cover

Climate change could give rise to security issues that could threaten global peace. Developed countries which, in the rush to development, adopted approaches that were not environmental friendly, must bear a greater burden in addressing the threat of climate change. Developing countries which are now seeking only to improve the lives of their people must be given the ability to achieve their development goals consistent with the need to protect the environment.

The world must recognize the value of the forest cover that many in the developing world have inherited. A value must be placed on maintaining this forest cover for the benefit of humanity. My view is that mechanisms must be established to enable developing countries to engage in carbon trading and trade in the value which is placed on this forest cover. While relevant technologies and financial assistance must be made available for developing countries to adopt an environmental friendly approach to development, traditional knowledge and experience in maintaining the forest cover must be acknowledged and utilised.

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10. ABDULLA SHAHID, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, MALDIVES: International financial support for innovation and adaptation is inadequate and fragmented

In recent months we in the Maldives experienced tidal surges on an unprecedented scale. Never in our documented history has so many islands been flooded over simultaneously and to such an extent. These surges were a grim reminder of the devastating tsunami of 2004 and a dangerous warning of future impacts.

Climate change is nothing short of an existential crisis for our beautiful islands. In the short term rising ocean temperatures, coupled with the acidification caused by greenhouse gases, threaten our prized coral reefs, the mainstay of the tourism and fisheries industries and the heart of our economic development.

Immediate action on reductions of greenhouse gas emissions presents the greatest opportunity to preserve the prospects for future prosperity, and further delay risks irreparable harm to sustainable development. Developed countries must continue to take the lead on reducing emissions and stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations at levels that would restore the balance of the Earth’s climate system. Developing countries should be given incentives to limit their emissions, in accordance with the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities.

We emphasize that deeper reductions in emissions than have been internationally agreed to date are imperative. The first round of Kyoto committed the industrialized countries among the signatories to an average five per cent reduction. The Maldives favours ambitious GHG reduction commitments by the Annex I parties and we reiterate the urgency of completing this negotiation by 2009 at the latest.

Current international financial support for innovation and adaptation is inadequate and fragmented. Mobilizing improved funding for capacity building needs to become a priority, starting with the UNFCCC Adaptation Fund, which should be operationalized in Bali. The Adaptation Fund should have a management structure that gives fair and adequate representation to SIDS and LDCs in the decision making process. Furthermore, it is vital that mechanisms are put in place to ensure both SIDS and LDCs can access these funds with minimal delay and bureaucracy.

Technological innovation throughout our economic system from energy and transport to construction will be pivotal. Our political system needs to encourage greater incentives for investment in clean technologies, public regulations to support innovation, and a greater commitment to technology cooperation between the developed and developing world.

The Maldives will host, in November, a Small Island States conference on “The Human Dimension of Climate Change”. This event will look at the human rights implications of global warming including with respect to the right to self-determination, the right to use and enjoy property, and indeed even the right to life itself.

In 1987 (Maldives President) Maumoon Abdul Gayoom brought the testimony of ordinary people threatened by climate change before world leaders for the very first time. In his memorable address to the UN General Assembly President Gayoom spoke of how global warning, if left unchecked, would lead to the death of our nation and many like it.

Speaking in London in July of this year, almost twenty years later, the President reflected on the great global threat that remains and the international effort that is so urgently needed. He said, and I quote “Let us say enough of expectation and promises – it is time to deliver. Enough of hesitation, it is now time for bold leadership”.

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11. TAVAU TEII, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT, TUVALU: The poor and vulnerable must be the primary recipients of the Adaptation Funds

I want to clearly spell out what my government believes is the best approach for financing measures to adapt to the impacts of climate change. First, we seek for a commitment by the international community to provide predictable and sufficient international funding arrangements such that the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change have the resources and know-how to adequately prepare for and to cope with the impacts of climate change.

In our view this is critical. As according to recent reports, adaptation funding needs due to climate change will be in the region of up to US$80 billion per year compared to a few hundred million dollars per year already available. A huge gap exists between the adaptation funding needs of the poor and most vulnerable to climate change and the total funding available under voluntary contributions for adaptation including from the yet to be actioned Adaptation Fund.

There is a genuine need to urgently explore means of adequately addressing this alarming gap in a sustainable long term basis. Contributions from developed countries to honour their obligations to assist meet the adaptation needs of developing countries, based on responsibility, have to be considered in earnest. Adaptation funding also needs to be de-linked from “aid/charity” or ODA thinking and linked to a “polluter-pays/obligations” paradigm.

There is also a need to carefully and timely consider issues of governance of adaptation funding to ensure equitable representation of developing countries in its governance, expediency of access and project approvals, and effective implementation of real adaptation on the ground.

We believe the Adaptation Fund will be the proper vehicle on which to develop an international strategy for addressing climate change. We seek an effective arrangement for the administration of the Adaptation Fund. We believe it is important that which institution administers the Fund it must do so in such a way that the poor and vulnerable are the primary recipients of the Fund.

We do not think the Global Environment Facility can do this job. If the GEF becomes the entity to manage the Adaptation Fund it will potentially mean that those countries that are the most in need of Adaptation Funding are potentially the least likely to be the main beneficiaries of the Adaptation Fund. This is due to a number of institutional and procedural complications within the GEF.

It is proposed that additional funding for the Adaptation Fund could come from: <> a levy on all airfares and maritime freight charges. This would include both national and international transport; <> contributions from all Parties based on a responsibility scale; <> corporate pledges.

Next we must establish a core principle of the Adaptation Fund, that the poor and most vulnerable must be the primary recipients of the Adaptation Fund. We believe that funding for adaptation should be closely linked to existing sustainable development programmes. As such there should be synergies between resilience building activities and poverty alleviation, food security and disaster management strategies. Nevertheless, the funding must be distinct. It must be recognised that funding for adaptation is new and additional money and should be for new and additional activities, not business as usual. It should not be linked as an ODA source of funding.

We note with interest the newly announced funding from the European Commission under the title of the Global Climate Change Alliance, though we remain to be convinced that this is new and additional funding.

We believe that actions to implement broad-scale and long-term adaptation projects must come from coordinated teamwork from a variety of institutions. To achieve effective coordination, we believe that the UNDP should administer the Adaptation Fund under a new management structure defined by the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol.

An international insurance mechanism will need to be established to provide relief for countries and communities affected by the impacts of climate change. This would need to be an internationally sourced pool of funds as the most vulnerable countries would not be able to afford insurance themselves. To this end, an International Climate Insurance Pool would need to be established. New efforts on adaptation and mitigation must be tangible outcomes of COP13 in Bali.

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12. PATRICK VAHOE JNR., MINISTER FOR COMMUNICATION, AVIATION & METEOROLOGY, SOLOMON ISLANDS: The cost of doing nothing will be at the expense of our children’s children future

It is a moral obligation for those countries that contributed significant share of global emissions of greenhouse gases, to take stronger action to limit the growth GHG emissions. We urge highly industrialised countries, both in the North and south, to take immediate steps in addressing climate change and sea level rise including the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. Not to do this now or any delay in addressing climate would be morally wrong and would jeopardise the lives of millions.

The extent to which developing countries including SIDS, and LDCS to effectively address climate change, will depend on the effective implementation by developed country parties of their commitments under the conventions related to financial resources and transfer of technology, taking into account that any economic and social development should not further disadvantage the lives of millions of people already living poverty line, let alone the deteriorating environment in which they already live, but to seriously improve their livelihoods.

It would not be unreasonable to expect the flow of financial resources and technology from developed countries to developing countries including Solomon Islands to effectively address climate change and sea-level rise. Market concepts will not work as the most vulnerable countries SIDS/LDCs are located on the periphery of the international economic system and would remain so as spectators to any mechanism or facilities that are beyond them.

In Solomon Islands, lessening our dependence on fossil fuels for our energy needs remain a huge challenge while adaptation to adverse effects to climate change has become an urgent and immediate priority. The cost of doing nothing will be at the expense of our children’s children future.

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13. GEORGE ANDRE WELL, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, VANUATU: Unlike terrorism, climate change has a universal target

Observational records in Vanuatu show a gradual increase in temperature in particular for the southern part of the country. Records also suggest a gradual decline in rainfall. Studies have predicted an increase in temperature between one and two degrees up to the year 2050. The sea-level increase of 50cm over the next 100 years is well within the predictions by the IPCC Third Assessment Report (TAR).

A total of 124 tropical cyclones have affected Vanuatu since 1939. Forty-five (which is 36%) of these were categorized as having hurricane force winds (greater than 64 knots), twenty-six were of storm force winds (48-63 knots) representing 21% and twenty-five were of gale force winds (34-47 knots), representing 20%. An additional 28 tropical cyclones were not categorized.

Climate scenario models and historical/observational trends point to warmer and drier conditions in much of Vanuatu. The magnitude of the expected change is likely to increase away from the equator. However, it is likely that some parts of the country may receive increased rainfall, due largely to the frequent tropical depressions and storms that are likely to develop around Vanuatu waters. It is also likely that the cyclones will become more intense and more frequent. The HADCM2 model indicates there may be more frequent El Nino type conditions associated with prolonged dry seasons.

Unlike terrorism, climate change has a universal target, working against all development initiatives and efforts of mankind. We welcome the announcement by the countries of the European Union to reduce emissions by 20% until 2020. However, there is still cause for concern. Climate change has to be tackled at the source. And we urge that the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol must be fully implemented and everyone must be more responsible. Defending the economics of gas emissions cannot be a just cause if millions of lives are threatened.