The president of Cop 21 and French Minister of Ecology, Ségolène Royal, handed over to her Moroccan counterpart, Saleheddine Mezouar, this Monday. The two ministers called for a commitment to Africa, which will be at the heart of the Marrakech conference.
Morocco officially took over the presidency of the 22nd Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Cop 22). The president of the previous Cop which took place in Paris, Ségolène Royal, passed the baton to the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Salaheddine Mezouar.
Some 192 states have signed the Paris agreement, 100 of which have already ratified it, underlined the president of COP21. “We have all together made possible what was said to be impossible,” she declared, nevertheless encouraging countries that have not yet ratified the agreement to do so by the end of the year.
A vulnerable Africa
Cop 22 must be that of Africa, in particular regarding the consideration of the challenges of mobilizing financing and technology transfers. Africa is the continent that is most affected by climate change without being responsible for it. Some 700 million Africans do not even have access to electricity.
In his speech, the new president of Cop 22, Salaheddine Mezouar, encouraged the world to maintain “the spirit of Paris”, the unprecedented mobilization which accompanied the pact adopted at the end of 2015. He also appealed to our conscience and “our collective responsibility” to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable. “What is at stake is not only climate change, but also a question of civilization and economic development,” he stressed.
In order to concretely commit the ten billion dollars promised to African countries at Cop 21, as part of the African Initiative for Renewable Energy, a summit of the continent’s heads of state will take place on November 16, during Cop 22, indicated Ségolène Royal.
Source : http://cop22news.com/maroc-prend-officiellement-presidence-de-cop-22/
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