15TH APPCED GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADOPTS KL DECLARATION ON CLIMATE CHANGE

KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama) - The Kuala Lumpur Declaration was
unanimously adopted at the 15th general assembly of the Asia Pacific
Parliamentarians’ Conference on Environment and Development (APPCED), held here
Wednesday.

The signing of the 19-point Declaration by 21 Asia Pacific participating
countries was witnessed by Senate President Abu Zahar Ujang.

The Declaration acknowledged that climate change and its impact on
environmental, economic and socio-cultural well-being constitutes one of the
most pressing challenges of our time.

It also recognized that all countries will have to adapt to climatic
change impacts already occurring and expected to increase in frequency and
severity which require financing, technology transfer and capacity building.

The body further voiced its concern on the slow pace of negotiations towards
full implementation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UN FCC).


The Declaration had acknowledged that Parliamentarians as legislators can
and should play a key role in encouraging their respective legislative bodies to
embrace climate resilient and climate friendly policies and craft effective and
meaningful legislation to address climate change in a fair and equitable manner.

The delegates recognized that response measures taken to address climate
change may adversely impact the tourism industry and agreed on the need to
cooperate with all countries to develop and implement measures to mitigate the
same.

The Declaration will be submitted to the United Nations secretary-general
during the UN Conference of Parties on climate Change in Switzerland, next year.