ASEAN must prioritise dealing with climate change

Lam Dong (VNA) – ASEAN must prioritise dealing with climate change and use energy
more efficiently, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

The government leader was addressing the opening ceremony of the 28 th ASEAN
Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM) and its partners as well as the ASEAN energy
forum in the Central Highlands City of Da Lat, Lam Dong province, on July 22.

The AMEM has brought together 500 delegates from around the world, including
ministers from the 10 ASEAN member countries, Japan, the Republic of Korea, China,
India, New Zealand, Australia and representatives from Russia, the US, and the ASEAN
Secretariat.

Themed “Energy and climate change”, the meetings will discuss the key areas that
ASEAN will focus on and the actions it will take this year and in the years to come,
said PM Dung.

He stated that ASEAN has made a lot of progress in energy cooperation and its energy
ministers have already agreed on the goals and plans for the group to cooperate in
energy during the 2010-2015 period.

He noted that the 28 th AMEM is tasked with the important duty of outlining the
initiatives that will help ASEAN to ensure energy security, define its priorities
and carry out specific measures on energy while keeping its partners informed on
energy-related matters.

To bring the group’s energy cooperation programmes and initiatives to life, PM
Dung asked the participants to focus on ways to ensure ASEAN energy security in the
wake of the bloc’s rising energy consumption, to meet their needs during the
post-crisis recovery period and to respond to climate change.

As climate change has become one of the biggest challenges the world and ASEAN are
currently facing, cooperation in researching and developing sources of energy and
working out solutions to deal with climate change and mitigating greenhouse emission
is essential, said Dung.

He said that to achieve its main goals, ASEAN member countries should step up
research, accelerate the project to put together a trans-ASEAN power grid and gas
pipeline system, and implement the ASEAN Oil and Gas Security Agreement to ensure a
secure supply of power, oil and gas, especially in emergency situations.

Stepping up the economic and effective use of energy will contribute to ensure
energy security and protect the environment, PM Dung stressed.

He referred to investing in technologies to produce clean coal, use renewable
energies, develop the energy market, utilise new technologies, provide financial
assistance and promote the transfer of clean technologies.

PM Dung said he hoped that ASEAN energy ministers and senior ASEAN officials and
ASEAN’s partners would discuss in depth initiatives and measures to achieve their
goals in energy cooperation this year.

Earlier the same day, PM Dung received the heads of delegations to the AMEM and
related meetings during which he described energy and climate change as the most
pressing concern for every single country in the world.

Many partners vowed to work out practical measures to address existing problems in
the energy field to help to build up and develop the ASEAN Community.

Later the same day, the government leader met the Indian Oil and Gas Minister,
Murli Deora, who said Indian businesses want to boost their investments in power
development and steelworks in Vietnam.-Enditem




Delete & Prev | Delete & Next