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Fight poverty and climate change together, says UN
25 September 2008
Climate change now seriously threatens efforts to tackle poverty and achieve the
Millennium Development Goals, delegates were told at the UN headquarters in New
York yesterday (24 September).
And while most of the global effort to tackle climate change is focused on
cutting emissions, the international community must now firmly address how to
adapt to its impacts.
It is the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people who are hit hardest by
floods, droughts and other impacts. But it is also through development that
climate change can be tackled effectively - by building low-carbon economies and
ensuring that developing countries are stronger and better prepared.
The meeting saw ministers from the UK, the Netherlands, Switzerland and
Bangladesh lead discussions on how to raise the money needed to help the world’s
poorest people adapt for the future. International delegates at the meeting,
which was facilitated by economist Jeffrey Sachs, also discussed the need to
integrate adaptation into development plans so that both poverty and climate
change are tackled together.
UK Trade and Development Minister Gareth Thomas said:
"For millions of people living in vulnerable countries - who’ve done least to
cause the problem – climate change is already a reality, and adaptation is a
necessity, not a choice." He stressed that securing additional finance was
"urgently needed" and must form part of a global UN climate deal.
The meeting comes in the wake of the UK’s recent
announcement of £75 million to help
Bangladesh – one of the worst affected countries – prepare for the impacts of
climate change.
The meeting concluded that political urgency must now be given to adaptation and
to securing the funds needed for adaptation as part of an international climate
change deal.
| Development impacts of climate change
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