Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the Kingdom of Morocco, Latifa Akherbach, has spoken out about how her country is mustering support in the fight against climate change. She was speaking at the COP 17 conference which she believes is meant to restore confidence and renew determination among participants to listen to each other and work with civil society in tackling global warming.
Akherbach said the fact that countries are aiming for an increase in average temperatures of two degrees Celsius, instead of 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels proves the inability of countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. She said there is a need to adopt a new model which is environmentally and human friendly. She added that despite the fact that Morocco is only able to make a small contribution, she is fully convinced it will make a remarkable difference.
Akherbach explained some of the strategies Morocco is implementing in the on-going fight against climate change. She said, they fight greenhouse gas emission through a participatory approach. They have designed a national strategy to move from carbon based to non-carbon based in the sphere of water, energy, and agriculture. She remarked it is the right of the citizens to have a sound development. In this light they have adopted a policy to reduce greenhouse gas and to improve in economic development.
By 2020, Morocco plans to have made significant progress on a range of sectors including renewable energy, cultural heritage monitoring and the fight against desertification by planting three million palm trees. Akherbach calls for a self-self-cooperation in Africa and the mobilisation of technical and financial resources. “We need to operationalise the Green Climate Fund by providing financial resources for the GCF.
She also called for a second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol, because she said “We are wasting time and some countries have become spectators while our planet suffers”.
