The meeting took place from 1-4 February 2010, in Amman, Jordan. The abstracts are organized into themes on: scenarios for climate change in dry areas; impacts on natural resource availability, agricultural production systems and environmental degradation; impacts on food security, livelihoods and poverty; mitigation, adaptation and ecosystem resilience; and enabling environments to cope with impacts. ICARDA is a member of Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [Book of Abstracts] [Climate-L.org story about the International Conference on Food Security and Climate Change in Dry Areas]

According to the message, mountain ecosystems are essential for regulating climate and water cycles, while they are threatened by land abandonment, intensification of agriculture, infrastructure development, unsustainable exploitation and climate change. With specific regard to climate change, the message notes that average temperatures increased by approximately 2 degrees in the Alps between the late 19th and early 21st centuries, which has resulted in: a significant decrease in glacier volume; less snow and more rain in the winter, resulting in more runoff in winter and less in spring and summer; and more than half of mountain plant species facing extinction by 2100. The message concludes that managing mountains sustainably relies on effective policies and actions at regional and local levels. [Message 8]

The Assembly endorsed the recommendations of the Committee of Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) on the streamlined single negotiation structure at ministerial and expert levels, with a view to ensuring effective coordination on climate change towards the 16th and 17th sessions of the Conference of Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC, to be held in Cancun, Mexico, in late 2010, and in South Africa in 2011, respectively. In addition, the Assembly endorsed the continued role of South Africa on the CAHOSCC in the run-up to COP17. African Governments expressed their intention to seek predictable and reliable financing to fight development challenges posed by climate change.

During the opening ceremony of the Assembly, on 25 July, Mexican President Felipe Calderón expressed hope that “in Cancún, all countries will be able to make a key contribution to the fight against climate change.” He stressed the need for African countries’ support and pragmatic approach to ensure that the Cancún Climate Change Conference will be “the start of a new era of agreements on climate change and the environment.”

On 27 July, Malawi President Bingu Wa Mutharika, Chairperson of the AU, delivered a speech on the African Food Basket as a new focused approach to agriculture and food security as the springboard for growth supported by strategic transport infrastructure, energy development, information communication technology, and climate change mitigation. He also stressed the need for African countries to strengthen national institutions responsible for monitoring natural disasters and environmental changes. During the closing ceremony of the Assembly, he appealed to all AU member States to champion the African Common Position on Climate Change in various fora and play a role in mitigating climate change effects. [South Africa press release] [Calderón’s speech] [Mutharika’s speech on the African Food Basket] [Mutharika’s speech at the Summit closing]

The report notes that CIFOR embarked on a four-year Global Comparative Study on Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (REDD). It also describes CIFOR’s work on Forest Day 3 at the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference. On REDD, the report highlights research efforts in Sumatra and lessons learned from Indonesia’s experience with its Reforestation Fund. It also outlines its experience with the Tropical Forest and Climate Change Adaptation (TroFCCA) project in Costa Rica. CIFOR is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [Annual Report]

In line with the “BASIC-plus” approach, additional participants were invited, with the Special Envoy of Venezuela for Climate Change in attendance as an observer. Equity in the international effort to address climate change was one of the main items on the agenda of the meeting. According to the resulting Joint Statement, BASIC ministers agree that fast-start finance will be the key for an effective result in the climate change negotiations at the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP 16) in Cancún, Mexico, in late 2010. They express concern about the lack of operational guidelines for the provision of such resources and underscore the need for such financing to effectively be new and additional, as well as provided as grants on a concessional basis, respecting the definitions of the UNFCCC and the understandings achieved in Copenhagen. BASIC ministers also stress the need for detailed and comprehensive information on fast-start financing flows provided by developed countries, to be made available officially, stressing the need for fast-start financing to cover, in a balanced way, all the pillars of the Bali Action Plan, including adaptation and technology development and transfer.

In addition, BASIC ministers underscore the distinction between measuring, reporting and verification (MRV) of emission reduction commitments by developed countries, which is related to compliance and comparability, and MRV of nationally appropriate mitigation actions (NAMAs) by developing countries, which is related to transparency. They further underline that work on the MRV of international support must advance urgently, including through the development of common procedures for the reporting of finance. They state that only supported NAMAs should be subject to international MRV, in conjunction with the MRV of international support, while non-supported NAMAs will apply domestic MRV, noting that international consultations and analysis of information regarding non-supported actions would be useful to enhance transparency, through a multilateral technical exchange under the UNFCCC.

BASIC ministers also underscore that a global goal for emission reductions should be preceded by the definition of a paradigm for equitable burden sharing, emphasizing equitable access to carbon space as a central element in the building of a balanced and comprehensive outcome for the climate change negotiations. The Fifth Meeting of Ministers of the BASIC Group will be held in China from 10-11 October 2010, together with a meeting of experts to take forward discussions on equitable access to carbon space and address issues related to trade policy and climate change. [Brazil Press Release] [Joint Statement]

On trade and climate change, participants underlined that: the EU and China should increase their cooperation to fight against climate change, with trade being a useful instrument to promote green growth; trade of environmental goods and services should be promoted, in particular wind and hydroelectric turbines, solar-powered boilers, solar panels, seawater desalination plants and wastewater reuse and treatment; and in the framework of WTO negotiations, the EU and China should cooperate to find an agreement to lower tariff barriers, concentrating on reducing obstacles to investment and non-tariff barriers that continue to seriously hamper the spread of environmentally friendly products. [EU Press Release]

Jean Ping, President of the AU Commission, addressed participants by highlighting Africa’s concerns and demands for a fair and equitable outcome of the international climate change negotiations. He noted the continued need to urge developed countries to meet their historical responsibilities and make progress on delivering on the Copenhagen pledges on finance for developing countries. He reported that the Commission convened a meeting of the CAHOSCC Ministers in Bamako, Mali, on 23 June 2010, and presented a proposal on “Streamlining African Climate Change Negotiating Structure at the Ministers and Experts Levels,” which was adopted by the meeting of Ministers.

Mexican President Felipe Calderón also participated in the meeting, warning that a lack of agreement in the international negotiations will affect the poorest nations and countries. He noted that the African Continent’s priorities include energy, water resources, and land management in forestry and urban infrastructure, and that the cost of adaptation for African nations and governments could be equivalent to 5-10% of Africa’s GDP.

CAHOSCC was established in 2009 by the AU Assembly to provide leadership in the climate change negotiation process with a view to promoting an African common position. [CAHOSCC Agenda] [Calderón’s Remarks]

The study responds to recommendations formulated at the Pacific Climate Change Roundtable held in the Marshall Islands in 2009, where concern was expressed about the Pacific region’s challenges in accessing available funding, effectively managing and implementing projects under current funding arrangements, and ensuring timely reporting to donors.

The study is expected to assess resources currently available to Pacific island countries for climate change initiatives, and identify likely new funding, in order to guide future national and regional responses and policies, including coordination arrangements. The results of the study will be presented to the SPREP Ministerial Meeting scheduled to take place in Madang, Papua New Guinea, in September 2010. [SPREP Press Release]

The US announced it is spending over $22 million in 2010 on environmental programmes in the Mekong Region, including a three-year programme to assist the four Lower Mekong countries in developing cooperative strategies to address the impact of climate change on water resources, food security and livelihood; and the continued development of “Forecast Mekong,” a predictive modeling tool to illustrate the impact of climate change and other challenges to the sustainable development of the Mekong River Basin.

The Ministers witnessed the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding for a “sister river” partnership between the Mekong River Commission and the Mississippi River Commission, which will allow the Commissions to conduct expert exchanges, share expertise and best practices in areas of climate change adaptation, flood and drought management, hydropower impact assessments, water resource management and food security. The Ministers agreed to convene the third US-Lower Mekong Ministerial Meeting in 2011. [US State Department Press Release] [Joint Statement]

Some of the other issues discussed by the Group at its first meeting included: options for the Commonwealth to make an enhanced global contribution as a source of constructive ‘soft power’ in the pursuit of collective global goals; the format and content of Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings and Ministerial meetings; and options for civil society interaction with government leadership.

The Eminent Persons Group was established by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their summit in November 2009, with a view to sharpening the Commonwealth’s impact, strengthening its networks, and raising its profile. The Group is scheduled to meet again in October 2010, and March 2011, before reporting to leaders at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2011. [Commonwealth Press Release]