Mr Al Attiyah spoke of climate change as a ‘challenge for all humanity’ and said that ‘we have to deploy serious efforts to mitigate its effects, and secure a better future for us and for future generations’.
In his address to delegates during the Opening Ceremony of COP18/CMP8 in Doha Qatar, incoming COP President, H.E. Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah spoke of the need to reach an agreement on the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol and to make progress on agreements made at COP17 in Durban last year.
Mr Al Attiyah spoke of climate change as a ‘challenge for all humanity’ and said that ‘we have to deploy serious efforts to mitigate its effects, and secure a better future for us and for future generations’.
UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres echoed these sentiments when she said that ‘COP18 will move the Bali Action Plan from plan to action, from design to the full and effective implementation that expedites urgent response to climate change and enables much needed financial assistance and technical support for developing countries, while clarifying the path forward on important pending issues.’
Maite Nkoana-Mashabane speaking at the opening session of COP18 in Doha, Qatar, Monday. UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres is seated to her right.
Ms. Maite Nkoana-Mashabane , Minister of International Relations and Co-operation of the Republic of South Africa, and President of COP17/CMP7, said that climate change is the most serious development challenge of our time and that we must act now.
Minister Nkoana-Mashabane, a member of the Foundation’s Troika+ of Women Leaders on Gender and Climate Change, played a key role in the successful stewardship of COP 17 last year in Durban.
Highlighting the importance of the negotiations and the progress made since Durban she said; ‘if you want to walk fast, walk alone. If you want to walk far, walk with others. We have walked a long way from Durban.’
Minister Nkoana-Mashabane spoke about the launch of her Legacy project Thuto ya Batho or ‘Teachings from my People’ which will be launched in Doha on Gender Day, Tuesday 27 November.
The project is, she said, a tribute to ordinary women who are ‘on the frontline and face the daily reality of climate change on the ground’. the Foundation President, Mary Robinson, who has written a foreword for the publication, will speak at the launch of the Legacy project.