Bonn, Germany, 14 November 2017/ EC/ ACP:
The European Union and 79 countries of the African, Caribbean and
Pacific (ACP) Group together making up more than half of the signatories
to the Paris Agreement on climate change, today reaffirmed their shared
commitment to the implementation of the Paris Agreement and urged all
Parties to ensure concrete progress at the UN Climate Change Conference
(COP23) taking place in Bonn, Germany.
The
EU and the ACP Group congratulate Fiji, an ACP Member State and the
first Small Island Developing State to hold the presidency of the UN
climate conference, for a successful first week of discussions. Both the
EU and the ACP Group acknowledge the importance of this year's
conference to ensure the achievement of key milestones for the full
implementation of the Paris Agreement.
The EU and the ACP Group welcome the ‘talanoa spirit’
under which negotiations have been conducted so far, a reference to the
Pacific tradition of Talanoa, a traditional approach to engage in an
inclusive, participatory and transparent dialogue. Both groups agree on
the need for ambitious climate action already before Parties are
required to implement their Paris Agreement obligations. They
acknowledge the importance of the so-called pre-2020 agenda, which
concerns developed countries' commitments under the Kyoto Protocol and
enhancing early action and collaboration between all partners, including
the non-Party stakeholders.
European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Caňete said: "Two
years after the adoption of the Paris Agreement and one year after its
entry into force, we continue to stand united in our commitment to
ambitious action and full implementation of the agreement. Now is the
time to ensure we maintain the Paris momentum and deliver the next steps
we have collectively agreed. We have made some good headway, but much
still needs to be done to ensure we leave COP23 with good results."
The ACP Secretary General Patrick Gomes said: "Climate
change is causing devastating impacts on many ACP Member States – the
recent hurricanes in the Caribbean should be a clear reminder to all of
the need to build resilience and contribute to a more sustainable,
secure future for the most vulnerable countries in the world."
The expectations of the EU and the ACP Group for COP 23 outcomes include, among others:
· a balanced package of decisions for moving forward the work programme under the Paris Agreement;
· progress on the design for the 2018 'facilitative dialogue';
· adoption of the first Gender Action Plan and operationalisation of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform;
· scaling up and accelerating climate action from the private sector and other non-state actors.
The
EU and the ACP Group are long-standing partners in international
climate cooperation. As an example, the Global Climate Change Alliance
Intra-ACP programme has been providing technical support to ACP
countries since 2011. The second four-year phase of the programme,
launched officially at COP23, will provide an additional EUR 70 million
to ACP countries to better adapt to the impacts of climate change and
contribute to strengthening the strategic role of the ACP Group in
global climate action.
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