LEADERS OF UN, US DECLARE 2009 THE YEAR OF CLIMATE CHANGE

With nations set to conclude negotiations on an ambitious new greenhouse gas emissions agreement this December, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and United States President Barack Obama have stressed the need for 2009 to be the year of climate change.

Mr. Ban, who met with the “visionary” American leader earlier this week at the White House in Washington, told journalists in his monthly press conference at UN Headquarters today that they both agree that climate change poses an “existential threat.”

The two men share a commitment that “2009 must be the year of climate change,” he said, stressing the importance a comprehensive successor pact to the Kyoto Protocol – the legally binding emissions reduction regime whose first commitment period ends in 2012 – at December’s UN climate change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark.

“With US leadership, in partnership of the United Nations, we can and will reach a climate change deal that all nations can embrace,” the Secretary-General noted.

Reports of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) – the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize co-laureate – have shown unequivocally that the world is warming, almost certainly due to human activity, with potentially disastrous effects including worsening drought in some regions and heavier rainfall in others.

Mr. Ban said today that he and Mr. Obama were of the same opinion that ‘green’ investments are an essential part of any stimulus package targeting the current global economic turmoil.

“If we are going to spend such tremendous sums of money, let us be smart about it,” he said.

He said that during his two-day visit to Washington, climate change also dominated his discussions with key American officials, including Senator John Kerry, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Congressman Howard Berman, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Last week, the top UN climate change official said that he sees “enthusiasm” in the current US Government to pass laws to reduce gas emissions and a willingness to work towards a new global climate change pact.

Yvo de Boer, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said he was “very much encouraged” following his recent meetings with officials in Mr. Obama’s administration and members of Congress.

“There is, I believe, a huge enthusiasm and energy in both the House and the Senate to put cap and trade climate change legislation in place in this country,” he added.

Mr. de Boer also underscored the willingness in the current US administration “to work towards an agreement in Copenhagen, to come with an ambitious domestic policy [and] to engage with international partners” to come to an accord.

Source: UN News Center, 17.03.2009

WORLD LEADERS CALL FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF WATER

World leaders signed a water consensus on Monday at the 5th World Water Forum, underlining the importance of sustainable development of water.

The leaders met during the forum on Monday afternoon, which appealed for concrete action of governments around the world to highlight the role water plays in development and society.

The forum, which aimed to facilitate solutions to the world's water problems and promote cooperation among states and organizations, began Monday in the largest Turkish city of Istanbul with the theme of "Bridging Divides for Water."

Leaders pledged in the consensus to show political will for solidarity, dialogue and cooperation with their neighboring countries regarding cross-border waters, and said the world could be more prosperous and stable by sharing water.

Diplomats said that the consensus would be sent to the G8 countries and the UN as a base for more comprehensive international documents; Kazinform cites Xinhua.

A record of 28,000 participants from all over the world, including a number of heads of state, more than 90 ministers, 63 mayors, 156 delegations and 148 parliamentarians were gathering in the largest water-related event organized every three years by World Water Council (WWC) together with the host country.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul stressed the "special importance" of the vital resource while addressing the opening ceremony, which was also attended by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon, Crown Prince Willem Alexander of the Netherlands, Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito Kotaishi and South Korean Prime Minister Han Seung-Soo.

He said people need more and more water to attain economic development, prosperity, high food production and improvement of sanitation, urging international community to remove restrictions and take joint action.

WWC President Loic Fauchon called on all policy makers and international decision makers to shoulder responsibility for sustainable development of water.

The future of the resource "does not only rest on technological progress, but also and mostly on political commitments," he said.

An official of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said Monday at the meeting that the demand for water has been increasing and access to safe drinking water and sanitation remains inadequate in much of the developing world.

"With increasing water shortages, good governance is more than ever essential for water management. Combating poverty also depends on our ability to invest in this resource," said UNESCO director-general Koichiro Matsuura.

Meanwhile, two water-related prizes were awarded on the occasion of the opening ceremony. The Hassan II Great World Water Prize was given to Abdulatif Yousef al-Hamad, president and director general of the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, for his significant contribution to the improvement of cooperation and solidarity in water development and management.

The Turkish Republic Prime Minister's Water Prize, which honors journalists who scored outstanding achievements in raising public awareness on water, was shared by Alison Bartle from Aqua Media International and three Turkish media staff.

The World Water Expo, which is a part of the forum, also kicked off on Monday. The show offered an opportunity for leading companies of water to present their services, products and advanced technologies.

In the day, Turkish police dispelled a Turkish group which attempted to protest the ongoing forum and detained 17 activists.

The group "No to Commercialization of Water," formed by members of several nongovernment organizations, rallied in front of the forum's main venue, Sutluce Congress and Culture Center, to protest what they said was the forum's promotion of water as a commodity.

Source: KAZINFORM, 17.03.2009