The
22nd Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (COP22), serving as the 12th meeting of Parities to the Kyoto
Protocol (CMP12), opened last Monday in the city of Marrakech, Kingdom of
Morocco.
The
two-week meeting, coming barely four days after the entry into force of the
Paris Agreement, which sets a legally binding target for Parties to stem global
warming to 2 degrees Celsius, will feature its first meeting (CMA1) this week,
when high-level government officials from all over the world will also converge
at the meeting to further cement the climate change agenda.
After
the opening ceremony, the Gambian multi-sector delegation has been following
and participating in all negotiations, including the most relevant side events,
to make the most out of the conference.
The team so far under the leadership of Hon
Minister Jarju and under the coordination of the permanent secretary, Ministry
of Environment, Climate Change and Natural Resources, Ousman Sowe, comprises
around 50 delegates from a cross-section of all stakeholders, ranging from
policy makers including a representative from the Gambian Embassy in Rabat,
Consul Omar Baldeh, Gambia Embassy in New York and senior
government officials to climate change experts, finance, agriculture, gender
and youth specialists, civil society organizations and public and private/hotel
sector representatives.
In
his introduction to the respective and collective roles of delegates at the
COP, PS Sowe earlier in the week
expressed confidence in the capacity of the delegation to live up to
expectations in Marrakech, given their past experience and the track record of
the country in the field of climate negotiations and action.
Moreover,
said Mr. Sowe, the delegation has the full political support of the Gambia
government and the leadership, who have demonstrated full political will and
support in every domain that interests the development, lives and livelihood of
Gambians.
The
representation and attendance of the Vice President at the High Level Segment
is a clear manifestation of high-level government commitment, he added.
Alpha
Jallow, the National Focal Point of UNFCCC in The Gambia, briefed the
delegation on the negotiation procedures and allocated respective pertinent
tasks to all delegates, given their areas of specialization and excellence.
He
also explained the processes involved in the negotiations, as well as the dos
and don’ts.
Bubu
Pateh Jallow, veteran negotiator of The Gambia, emphasized what Alpha said and
went on to give indications as to where to get full information on what to
follow during the negotiations, particularly those issues relevant to the
country, which, however, are inseparable with those of Least Developed
Countries (LDCs), Africa and the Group of 77 and China.
These
groups, he said, though they may have divergent views, are bound to be
supportive of each other in the process and, therefore, negotiators need to
avoid voicing contradictory positions.
It
would be recalled that The Gambia, through the leadership of the current
Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Natural Recourses, Honourable Pa
Ousman Jarjue, is known to have pushed the core tenets of the Kyoto Protocol
which, through the Adhoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced
Action (ADP), has given birth to the Paris Agreement, which is the most
comprehensive and legally binding mechanism to solve global climate change
problems so far.
Mr
Jarjue is the predecessor to the current LDC group Chairman and has, during his
tenure, successfully steered the affairs of the group, replenished the Least
Developed Country Fund (LCDF) to the tune of 200 million US dollars to which
every LDC had an equal drawing right of twenty-five million Us dollars.
This has become the springboard of all key Climate
Change projects in The Gambia under the National Programme of Action on Climate
Change (NAPA).
The
Gambia delegation has so far held two briefing and debriefing sessions.
The
last one held on Saturday, was attended by the Hon Minister Pa Ousman Jarju,
who was briefed by the respective delegates in the delegation on their meetings
and engagements during the week.
The
minister in-turn provided briefing and reported to the Vice President at her
residence on the evening of Sunday, November 13.
The
briefing session for the VP by Minister Jarju was attended by Hon Minister Omar
Sey, Gambia’s UN Ambassador Momodou Tangara, Omar Baldeh, Gambia Embassy Rabat,
Hon. NAM, Ousman Bah, PS Sowe and DPS Bah Office of the Vice President.
The
Vice President of The Gambia among other world leaders is expected to address
the 22nd UNFCCC Conference of Parties in the Moroccan city Marrakech on
Wednesday November 16, 2016.
