Climate change: the PAGGW takes part in the United Nations Conference in Marrakech
November 15, 2016
Marrakech, 15 November 2016. The 22nd session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-22) is being held in Marrakech, Morocco, from 7 to 18 November 2016. The Executive Secretary of the Pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall, Prof. Abdoulaye Dia, is among the heads of African institutions and organizations taking part in this international meeting.
Within this rich and varied framework, which addresses the issues of climate change and the adaptation and resilience measures specific to the African continent (adaptation and mitigation, green economy, climate-smart agriculture, transport, health, water and sanitation), the Executive Secretary will highlight the commitment of the Agency’s Saharan-Sahelian member States, which are among the first victims and the most exposed.
He will take advantage of several platforms (round tables, conferences and bilateral meetings) to promote, to the international community, the various actions implemented by the Pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall in the eleven (11) countries of the area where it operates. These actions contribute to making the Agency one of the leaders in combating climate change in Africa. The Executive Secretary is taking part at the same time in several side events at COP-22 and will meet strategic partners of the Agency in order to strengthen bilateral and multilateral alliances and to create new ones. Technology transfers in this field will also be addressed through exhibitions and group discussions.
The Marrakech Conference brings together several thousand participants from around the world, including Heads of State and Government, scientists and representatives of civil society organizations working in the field of environmental protection. According to some participants, if COP-21, which took place in Paris, was the one of major decisions, COP-22, being held in Marrakech, must be the one of action, through the realization of the announced financing for the flagship projects of African initiatives, in particular the Great Green Wall Initiative, regarded by the international community as an appropriate response from Africa to climate change, and therefore a priority for funding and for support from technical and financial partners.
“By coming to Marrakech, I recognize both the international legitimacy of the Paris Agreement and the importance of the commitment expected from States, technical and financial partners, local communities and other civil society actors in combating the harmful effects of climate change, in order to durably establish the adaptation and resilience of ecosystems and populations in the Sahel and their mitigation. I therefore call on them to take greater action within a framework of regional and international solidarity in order to confront these major challenges of the 21st century”, declared Prof. Dia on the sidelines of the Conference.
