Stakeholders updated on US$2.3M climate change project

Rio Convention

As the world moves towards achieving the 2015-2030 Sustainable Development Goals, local stakeholders were on Tuesday updated on Guyana’s status with regards to the implementation of policy objectives under the 1992 Rio Convention. The stakeholders gathered at the Marriott Hotel, Georgetown and were given an overview of the status of the US$2.3 Million Rio Convention Mainstreaming Project.
Several countries, including Guyana, had signed onto the 1992 Rio Declaration on

Environment and Development which among, other objectives, seeks to curb using harmful materials to the environment. It is generally accepted that these restrictions will reduce the devastating impacts of climate change.
Project Coordinator Michelle Klass explained that the mainstreaming project will be guided by four components which include institutional reforms, bringing educative awareness to the project and to formulate laws in keeping with good environmental practices. She highlighted that component one looks at strengthening institutional capacities while component two focuses on the technical capacities. Component three of the project is geared at engaging in dialogue which highlights the value of the Rio Convention whereas part four deals with updating the national capacity and self-assessment of the project.
Meanwhile, Director of the Department of Environment within the Ministry of the Presidency, Ndibi Schwiers, said the project is using local consultants only. She also outlined some of the goals the initiative hopes to achieve which includes improving the way in which information is obtained.
“It is our expectation that by the end of this project, progress would be made is strengthening both technical and institutional capacities in collecting and managing data and information in facilitating legislative reforms and in establishing a data monitoring and management system,” the Department’s Director observed.
Speaking at the event, Minister of State Joseph Harmon called on international partners to commit to the Rio and Paris Climate Change Conventions.
“We have recommitted ourselves to the Rio Conventions on climate change and we continue to ask and promote the climate change conventions which have been signed and we wish to ask those countries that have not committed to the Paris Agreement to recognise what is happening in the world and to take a very firm step in ensuring that we commit resources to be able to work in a better way so that the impact of these disasters like the hurricanes can be lessened,” Harmon implored.
The Rio Convention Mainstreaming Project is co-funded by the United Nations Development Fund (UNDP), Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and the Guyana Government. It was disclosed that some $387,000 of the project’s budget was already expended for this year, which reflects nearly 20 per cent of the total funds available.
The project commenced in late 2016 and will conclude by 2020.