Ethiopia and Sudan Praise Qatar s Hosting of COP 18

Doha, November 29 (QNA) Ethiopia and the Republic of Sudan have praised the State of Qatar s hosting of the current discussions under the 18th Conference of Parties (COP 18) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and 8th Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 8), thanks to its valuable experience in bringing opinions together wisely and justly. The two African countries confirmed the importance of Qatar hosting this conference for the first time in the Middle East at a time when the exacerbated risks of climate change and global warming do not recognize geographical boundaries or economic, social and cultural differences. According to recent studies, the temperature in recent decades was the highest compared with any similar period since 400 years, which required the UN to bear the moral responsibility. In a statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA) today on the sidelines of the COP 18, Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Environmental Protection Authority General Manager Yewolde Berhan Gbre said that his country relies on the Qatari presidency to lead this round of discussions to a second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol, additionally to achieve a framework for most industrial countries to abide by. Gbre praised Qatar s success as the host in creating a suitable environment for the participants to reach positive results, indicating that the success of the talks is the responsibility of all parties involved. He expressed hopes for positive results, despite difficulties resulting from the sensitivity of the issue of climate change related to decision-making within governments and the surrounding effects on the question of political elections and economic conditions. For his part, Undersecretary of Sudan s Ministry of Environment, Forests and Urban Development Babiker Ibrahim Abdulla told QNA that the Qatar talks are particularly important because they are being held at a time when the need for renewal of the 2nd commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol reducing the emission of greenhouse gases is high. Hopes are high for the Doha conference, he said, expressing hopes that the State of Qatar would be able to use its strong connections with other major countries setting a minimum commitment to reduce the effects of climate change. On areas of cooperation between Qatar and Sudan in the environmental field, Abdullah expressed his country s pride to support Qatar in many fields, particularly the Darfur negotiations, by finding a peaceful solution and financing many of the programs and projects. He further said that the State of Qatar will host a donors' conference to support the growth and development of Darfur at the beginning of the new year. It is noted that the State of Qatar has adopted a program to preserve and protect monuments worth $150 million as they are exposed to many risks during gold search operations in a number of areas in Sudan, in addition to the adoption of a number of capital projects to help farmers and herdsmen in order to achieve sustainable development. (QNA)