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Developed countries must cooperate on climate change
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SPECIALCORRESPONDENT on 14 April, 2008 10:28:00
 
Washington: India has urged the developed countries to massively reduce
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and also provide financial help and facilitate
technology transfer to the developing nations so that the problem of climate
change could be resolved.
At the breakfast meeting on Sunday convened by the World Bank Group president
Robert B Zoellick to take the Bali convention forward amid the ongoing
International Monetary Fund-World Bank Spring Meetings, the Indian Finance
Minister P Chidambaram said that given their (developed nations) responsibility
for causing the problem, the developed world has these two clear obligations (of
reducing GHG emission financial and financial and technology help).
Narrating the importance of confabulation and contemplation over the issue
togather by developing and developed nations representatives, the WB president
said, "The drive to address climate change won't work if it's seen as a rich
man's club."
At the meeting in Bali in December 2007, countries had agreed on a road map for
two years of regular talks aimed at securing a treaty to succeed the Kyoto
Protocol on climate change when its first period expires in 2012.
The Finance Minister pointed that all the nations had a shared responsibility
to think through the complex challenges of climate change and come up with fair,
equitable and imaginative solutions. He further clarified, "No discussion on
climate change can be taken forward without underscoring the deep inequity in
the causes and impacts of climate change."
On their part, Chidambaram said, developing countries can start working on key
vulnerabilities like "climate proofing" of public infrastructure investments,
food security, water resources and pursue policies to incentivise private
actions towards energy efficiencies.
Noting that India's GHG emissions are among the lowest in per capita terms, he
said: "They will, of course, inevitably increase as we endeavour to remove
poverty and provide basic needs to all the people."
But even while pursuing development goals, India's per capita GHG emissions
will always remain below the per capita GHG emissions of developed countries,
Chidambaram said.
India has unilaterally taken significant steps to meet the challenges, which
include measures to promote clean technology, review fuel emission and
efficiency regulations, mass transport systems, encouraging the use of gas and
building sustainable greenfield cities.
The Indian government has spent 2.6 percent of the GDP during 2006-07 on
adaptation-related activities and plans to establish a permanent institutional
mechanism to play a coordination role to explore and implement ideas on climate
change and to take on the important responsibility of advocacy, the minister
informed.
Global action on climate change will require building trust between developed
and developing countries, Chidambaram said. "There must be trust about the
neutrality of processes or institutions through which agreements are
implemented, money is disbursed or disputes are resolved."
The Indian minister said that climate justice must inform all efforts at
international cooperation in this field. The solutions should include fair
burden sharing and measures to realise sustainable patterns of consumption and
production.
Calling on the nations of the world to join hands to deal with the problem, He
said: "I assure you, India is and will continue to be a responsible and
conscientious citizen of the world". (IANS)