At the end of the 22nd Session of the Conference of Parties (COP22) on Climate Change in Marrakech, governments set a rapid deadline of 2018 to complete the Rule Book for operationalising the Paris Agreement.
The book is to help outline how countries would monitor and report on their nationally determined pledges to curb greenhouse gas emissions, which were unclear in the Paris Agreement.
This is to ensure confidence, cooperation and its success over the years and decades to come.
The agreement calls for a significant boost of transparency of action, including for measuring and accounting emissions reductions, the provision of climate finance, and technology development and transfer.
It also includes work to design the adaptation communications, which is the primary vehicle under the Paris Agreement to share individual adaptation efforts and support needs.
Countries have already built the foundation for this by peer assessing each other’s actions to cut emissions through a transparent process that began in 2014.
They also accelerated global climate action across a broad range of areas at the 2016 UN climate change conference.
Multi-billion and multi-million dollar packages of support for clean technologies; building capacity to report on climate action plans, and initiatives for boosting water and food security in developing countries were also among the many new announcements and initiatives launched.
Mr. Mezouar, the President of the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP 22), said, “The Kingdom of Morocco is fully engaged in the success of this COP and will energetically carry out its role as President.
At the outcome of the last 15days, our vision has been consolidated and we are working to make concrete progress and to carry out breakthrough actions from now until the end of 2017.
“It will be necessary to respect the commitment of $100 billion dollars from now until 2020.”
Faced with the magnitude of what is required for dealing with the impacts of climate change Mr Mezouar said turning billions into trillions was indispensable, and emphasised that 2017 must be the year of large scale projects, of mobilising finance, and accessing financial facilities that would be necessary for adaptation.
Businesses, investors, cities and local governments also issued new climate change commitments, adding to the thousands announced in the run up to the Paris climate conference last year, he said.
Patricia Espinosa, the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said, “The landmark Paris Agreement set the course and the destination for Global Climate Action.
“Here in Marrakesh, governments underlined that this shift is now urgent, irreversible and unstoppable,” she said.
Ms. Espinosa added, “During COP 22, the strength, the support for and the robustness of the Paris Agreement was further underlined, with nine more ratifications received at the UN in New York and the promise of many more to come.”
Nations reaffirmed that the agreement was in their national interests and a key catalyst to a better, more prosperous future for their citizens, she said.
“I would like to pay tribute to the Government of Morocco and the President of the Conference, Mr. Salah eddine Mezouar, for their remarkable success,” she said.
“COP 22 has been what it needed to be, a COP of action that has accelerated progress under the Paris Agreement across finance, new initiatives, ambition and solidarity between nations and across Continents.”
COP 22, hosted by Morocco’s King Mohammed VI, saw almost 500 Heads of State or Government and Ministers in attendance.
It also witnessed the first meeting of the Paris Agreement’s top governing body following early entry into force of the Paris Agreement on 4 November.
Fiji was announced as the host of the 2017 UN Climate Conference, with Germany assisting the Pacific island nation by holding it in Bonn.
At his final press briefing, the Mr Salaheddine Mezouar, said “Marrakesh is the place where real action on the Paris Agreement has began,” adding that, “We will continue on the path.”
On the President-elect in the US, he said, “We count on our commitment for our planet and for the dignity of millions of people, we know that Trump is pragmatic and the entire US is committed.”
Trump’s election has been seen as a danger to the Paris Agreement and it was raised at every press conference a day after the start of the conference.
