India to partner with Africa to fight climate change

Ahead of the UN climate conference in Paris later this year, India today said that adaptation and mitigation must be accorded "equal" importance and assured that it will partner with African nations to fight climate change while taking cooperation to a "new level".
Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar who is in Cairo to attend an important conference on environment noted that developing African countries and India are particularly affected by adverse impacts of climate change and stressed that "issues" should be sorted out for the Paris convention to happen "smoothly".
"As we all prepare for the Paris meeting of the Conference of the Parties, we need to recognise that both adaptation and mitigation must be accorded equal importance. Developing countries like African countries and India are particularly impacted by adverse impacts of climate change," he said.

He said this during a speech at the Fifteenth Session of African Ministerial Conference on Environment being held from March 4-6.
He also noted that the pledges taken by countries for the Green Climate Fund (GCF) are "inadequate" and the issue of critical technology still remains "unresolved".
"The pledges for GCF are inadequate. The issue of critical technology is still unresolved. Time is short. The world must act fast. If we want Paris Convention to happen smoothly, we need to sort out these issues well in time.

"Let us welcome that every country is ready for some kind of action. We should appreciate this global effort and allow it to work as per the INDCs to be presented by each country," Javadekar said.

He said that with each country formulating its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), certain issues like technology transfer along with knowhow at an affordable cost need "immediate attention".
"As we formulate INDCs, certain issues need immediate attention. One of those is technology transfer along with know how at an affordable cost so that we are able to move expeditiously towards lowering of the energy intensity of our economic growth and improving energy efficiency in various sectors," he said.
Noting that India has been invited to the conference for the first time, Javadekar said that cooperation with African nations will be taken to a new level under the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and stressed both should work together on path of clean energy.

"India will always echo African aspirations and partner in our effort to fight the challenge presented by climate change," he said.