UN – Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has urged UN Member States to move quickly to join the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the national level, so that it can enter into force as early as possible.
Ban made the call in his remarks at the opening and signature ceremony for the agreement on Friday in New York, where no fewer than 165 Member States are attending, with 60 Heads of States and Heads of Governments.
He said that the window for keeping global temperature rise well below two degrees Celsius, let alone 1.5 degrees, is rapidly closing.
“The era of consumption without consequences is over. We must intensify efforts to decarbonise our economies.
“We must support developing countries in making this transition. The poor and most vulnerable must not suffer further from a problem they did not create.
“Let us never forget, climate action is not a burden; indeed, it offers many benefits,’’ he said.
Ban said that the action can help States eradicate poverty, create green jobs, defeat hunger, prevent instability and improve the lives of girls and women.
Climate action, he added, is essential to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
He acknowledged all those who contributed to the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 21) negotiations in Paris and to the preparations for the signing event.
“Today is a day that I have worked toward since day one as Secretary-General of the United Nations and declared climate change to be my top priority.
“Today you are signing a new covenant with the future. This covenant must amount to more than promises.
“It must find expression in actions we take today on behalf of this generation and all future generations; actions that reduce climate risk and protect communities; actions that place us on a safer, smarter path.
“This morning we will be joined by 197 children, representing the Parties that adopted the Paris Agreement.
“Of course, they represent more than this, these young people are our future. Our covenant is with them.
“Today is a day for our children and grandchildren and all generations to come.
“Together, let us turn the aspirations of Paris into action,’’ he added.
Ban said as world leaders show by the very act of signing, the power to build a better world is in your hands.
The signing is the first step toward ensuring that the agreement enters into force as soon as possible.
After signing, countries are expected to take the further national or domestic step of accepting or ratifying the agreement.
The agreement can enter into force 30 days after at least 55 Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), ratify the agreement.
Some countries, mostly Small Island Developing States, deposited their instruments of ratification immediately after signing the agreement.
They are Barbados, Belize, Fiji, Grenada, Maldives, Mauritius, Nauru, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Somalia and Tuvalu.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that there is only one original copy of the agreement containing the full text of the agreement in the six official languages of the UN —Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
There is a page for each of the 197 Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
States that have not signed will still have the possibility of joining the agreement by depositing an instrument of accession with the Secretary-General.
The Paris agreement, like most international agreements concluded under the auspices of the UN, designates the Secretary-General to serve as the depository.
This means that the Secretary-General is the sole custodian of the original of the agreement, and performs a number of key functions relating to participation in the agreement, such as receiving any signatures or any instruments or communications relating to it and informs the parties of the entry into force. (NAN)