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Oceans a priority in climate talks, RI says
Indonesia expects the upcoming World Ocean Conference (WOC) in Manado this May 11-15 to produce a joint declaration acknowledging the crucial role oceans play in international climate change adaptation programs
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Indonesia expects the upcoming World Ocean Conference (WOC) in Manado this May 11-15 to produce a joint declaration acknowledging the crucial role oceans play in international climate change adaptation programs.
The government has also expressed a desire for the participating countries to agree to share technologies as well as information to assist each other with the challenges of climate change.
More than 120 countries have confirmed they will attend the conference, one of the largest environment events of the year.
Almost 5000 delegates including heads of states, senior government officials, experts, observers and NGO activists will gather in the North Sulawesi capital of Manado for the conference, which will be followed by the regional environmental event known as the Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI) Summit.
The CTI Summit will be attended by the heads of the so-called "coral triangle" nations - Indonesia, East Timor, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, the Philippines, and the Solomon Islands.
"We hope that the Manado Ocean Declaration will be incorporated into talks during the 15th UNFCCC Conference of Parties meeting in Copenhagen in December," Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi said in a press conference following a Cabinet meeting on preparations for the WOC and CTI Summit at the Presidential Palace on Wednesday.
"Surely we have to work hard in this context, to determine what's next after the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012. With the Manado Ocean Declaration, we hope that the ocean dimension will play a greater role (in a new agreement) after the Kyoro Protocol," he said.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has expressed hope that the two events will boost Indonesia's image as environmentally-concerned, Freddy said, as its one of the world's biggest emitters of greenhouse gases.
Regarding the CTI, Freddy said donor countries had granted US$70 million through the Global Environmental Fund (GEF) for the conservation of coral reefs, marine resources and ecosystems within the region. Indonesia, he added, had also received $40 million from the United States alone for the same reason. Indonesia now hopes to receive the largest portion of GEF funds as it initiated the CTI process, the minister said.
The country also wants the secretariat of the CTI to be build in North Sulawesi, with the region's governor claiming they are prepared for the thousands of international guests.
