Rwanda’s Prime Minister, Edouard Ngirente will lead Rwanda’s delegation at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, an official source confirmed Saturday in Kigali.
The UN climate talks, which begin on Sunday, will centre on efforts to deliver on pledges to meet the goals of the Paris Accords, signed in 2015.
Cop26 president Alok Sharma has urged countries to submit ambitious emissions reductions goals before the summit to mitigate some of the most disastrous effects of climate change by keeping global warming to 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels.
Before the summit, Rwanda pledged to reduce its carbon emissions 38 per cent by 2030. It also announced this month that it intends to reach net zero emissions by 2050 including the implementation framework of the Paris Agreement, guidelines on carbon markets and the finance needed to address climate change and adapt to it.
The summit will be hosted by the UK in partnership with Italy and runs for two weeks until November 12.
Rwandan minister of Environment, Dr Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya noted that to achieve global climate goals, countries need to manage the increasing impacts of climate change on citizens’ lives and renew their commitment to sustainable climate finance.
“COP26 is an opportunity for the world to end the fossil fuel era and start regenerating nature, while also protecting remaining ecosystems,” she said.
COP26 is one of the most important international world conferences, especially post-COVID. It serves as an opportunity to take advantage of the billions of dollars in development assistance that will be available for countries like Rwanda that are leaders in addressing climate change mitigation and adaptation, which remains a challenge to national sustainable development.
CU/abj/APA