H.E. Martine Dorance, Ambassador of France to Pakistan hosted on Monday 31 October a reception to mark the handover of the French Presidency of COP21 to the Moroccan Presidency of COP22, from the Paris Climate Change Conference to the upcoming Marrakesh one which will take place from 7 to 18 November.
The reception was attended by the Chief Guest, federal Minister for Climate Change, Mr. Zahid Hamid, the Chargé d’affaires a.i. of the Moroccan Embassy and many diplomats, government officials, members of Parliament and representatives from the civil society.
“The Paris agreement did largely come up to expectations. The global community was able to agree on ways and means to combat climate a change including the high ambition to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degree centigrade above the pre-industrial level and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.f degree centigrade. Other plus points are provisions regarding mitigation, adaptation, finances, technology, capacity building, transparency”, said by Zahid Hamid.
He also said from our point of view a major plus point is adherence in the agreement to the basic principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities in the light of different national circumstances.
Federal Minister also told the audience that ratification of Paris Agreement is imminent. The ratification process was initiated soon after COP-21. Pakistan INDCs will also be sent to UNFCCC secretariat soon before the commencement of COP22.
He also informed that the Pakistan Climate Change bill is in its final shape. This provides for through consultation of policymaking Climate Change Council at the apex, chaired by Prime Minister. This bill be introduced in Parliament shortly.
The Ambassador appreciated the government of Pakistan for all the efforts displayed before and after the COP21 and thanked the Pakistani authorities for their constant cooperation on the subject. The awareness on the threats posed by climate change was raising in Pakistan and needed to be stressed, in a country so vulnerable to its effects.
She welcomed the multiple announcements made by the Minister for Climate Change: the upcoming ratification of the Paris Climate Agreement by Pakistan before the COP22 as well as the upcoming submission of a new national contribution by Pakistan.
He central role of the civil society was also underlined by its Representative, Ambassador Kakakhel. The creation of a Pakistan Civil Society Coalition for Climate Change (CSCCC) after the “Pakistan sey Paris” Forum which had taken place in Lahore in October 2015, was a very positive sign. The CSCCC is a new platform of like-minded organizations formed with the objective of raising awareness about climate change, strengthening adaptive capacity and fostering partnerships that will contribute towards building resilience and reducing vulnerability in the country.
This reception was the occasion to take stock of the conclusions of the pre COP22 event “Pakistan se Marrakesh: Framing the Pakistan Agenda for COP22” which took place at the Serena hotel Islamabad on 28th of October, which aim was to bring legislators, policy makers, civil society and media to discuss the key elements of the Pakistan’s INDC before the next COP. This seminar was attended, among many stakeholders, by Minister Zahid Hamid and Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi
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