12 CLIMATE CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT CO-OPERATION
(24363)
7523/03
COM(03) 85
| Commission Communication on climate change in the context of
development co-operation.
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| Legal base | —
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| Document originated | 11 March 2003
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| Deposited in Parliament |
19 March 2003 |
| Department | International Development
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| Basis of consideration |
EM of 21 March 2003 |
| Previous Committee Report |
None |
| To be discussed in Council
| No date set |
| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | Cleared, but information on progress requested
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Background
12.1 The Commission introduces this Communication by
stating that, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC),[24] climate
change[25] is taking
place and there is new evidence that most of the warming observed
during the last 50 years is attributable to human activities.[26]
The Commission Communication
12.2 The purpose of the Communication is to consider
the impact of climate change on poverty and achieving the Millenium
Development Goals[27]
and to examine how development cooperation should adapt in order
to respond effectively. It proposes an EU climate change strategy.
12.3 Firstly, the Communication reviews
existing information on the extent of current and anticipated
climate change. It considers the impact this is likely to have
on the main causes of poverty, emphasising the need for effective
action to reduce the extent of future climate change and to mitigate
the cause — that is, greenhouse gas emissions — both
by reducing emissions and by "sequestration", that is
by increasing "sinks", particularly tropical forests,
to absorb these emissions. It also emphasises the need to adapt
effectively to cope with the impact anticipated.
12.4 On support for mitigation, the Commission
says:
"Partner countries will need support in
reconciling their legitimate needs for economic development with
the protection of the environment and sustainable use of energy
and natural resources. Even though mitigation options can be
explored in all sectors of the economy, as far as developing countries
are concerned the greater potential for emission reductions through
mitigation activities, with good ancillary benefits in terms of
sustainable development, exist primarily in the areas of energy
supply, energy use and transport".
12.5 Setting climate change within the broad
context of poverty eradication and sustainable development, the
Commission emphasises the need to "mainstream" climate
change considerations into broader policy-making processes in
developing countries, recognising that the implications can be
far-reaching, and that adaptation must fit in with the main objective
of reducing poverty.
THE EU STRATEGY
12.6 The proposed strategy for the EU is
aimed at assisting the partner countries to meet the challenges
posed by climate change through implementing the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)[28]
and the Kyoto Protocol. Four strategic priorities, are identified:
- Raising the profile of climate
change; the Communication
recognises that the implications of climate change for poverty
are poorly understood and rarely considered when development policy
is made or assistance planned. It argues for giving climate change
a higher profile in the work of the Commission and Member States;
- Support for adaptation to climate change;
adapting to climate change is critical
if its impact, particularly on the poorest in poor countries,
is to be minimised. The Commission notes that adaptation is most
effective when it is integrated into mainstream development work
and the poverty eradication process, for instance into
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers. It urges Member States to
follow this approach;
- Support for mitigation of climate change;
long-term stabilisation of greenhouse gas emissions is critical
to averting long-term climate change. The Communication recognises
the need for developed countries to take the lead in this area,
but also notes the almost inevitable need for at least some countries,
primarily the larger rapidly-industrialising developing countries,
to take some action to curb emissions in order to achieve global
stabilisation. The Communication notes that actions aimed at
reducing emissions in developing countries can generate positive
development benefits; and
- Capacity development; the
Commission notes the obligations of developed countries, within
the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, to assist developing
countries to develop the capacity to adapt to climate change.
The Commission urges Member States to address this issue, within
the context of their broader capacity-building efforts.
12.7 The Commission recalls that, at a Conference
of the Parties to the UNFCCC in July 2001 in Bonn, the EU+ group[29]
pledged to contribute $410 million each year to 2005 to assist
developing countries. This is known as the Bonn Political Declaration,
although the official title is the Political Declaration by the
EU+. No agreement has been reached since on the distribution
of these funds. It was suggested at the time that distribution
should be calculated on the basis of CO2 emissions
in 1990 by the members of the group, with the obvious exception
of the Commission.
The Government's view
12.8 The former Secretary of State for International
Development (Clare Short) noted that, in considering the impact
that current and anticipated climate change is likely to have
on the main causes of poverty, the Communication presents no new
or controversial information. She added:
"DFID is already working closely with the
Commission, as well as a number of other agencies, on climate
change and poverty. We have a good relationship with the Commission
on this issue and the proposed EU Strategy is broadly consistent
with UK policy. However, there are potential areas of policy
divergence:
i) Burden-sharing of the financial implications
of the Bonn Political Declaration. We should be clear that financial
issues remain a national, rather than community, competency and
so we are not attracted to the adoption of any formal system of
burden-sharing amongst EU Member States. We consistently advocate
this message in all collective policy-making processes and generally
have good support from the majority of Member States; and
ii) We must be cautious regarding the promotion
of mitigation activities in developing countries. Successful
stabilisation of atmospheric green house gas levels will almost
inevitably require action by at least some developing countries
(primarily the large industrialising middle-income countries)
to reduce emissions. It would however be wrong if developing
country growth paths were negatively influenced by the need to
resolve what is essentially a problem caused by developed countries.
It is imperative that development assistance is NOT seen by developing
countries as an instrument solely or largely to achieve emissions'
reduction in developing countries. We consistently work through
the established Whitehall climate change coordination process
to ensure that the UK pushes these concerns in the process of
formulating EU collective policies".
12.9 On the timetable, she said that she
did not expect the issue to be taken forward during the Greek
Presidency primarily due to a lack of capacity.
Conclusion
12.10 We welcome the Commission's objective
of ensuring a higher profile for climate change and that it should
be "fully mainstreamed" into EU development cooperation.
12.11 We understand
that this 52-page Communication is intended primarily as a discussion
document. Couched in language and acronyms which are not likely
to be fully intelligible to a general audience, it is clear that
it has been written mainly for a specialist readership, or one
which the Commission hopes will rapidly acquire expertise on the
issue. The Commission sees it as being intended for use with
partner countries as a basis for dialogue between their representatives,
Commission delegations and Member States representations. Many
of the detailed proposals in the Action Plan, if accepted, would
be for action by the staff of the Commission, in Brussels and
abroad.
12.12 The
former Secretary of State commented that the Commission draws
on existing knowledge when considering the impact of climate change
on poverty. Whilst we can see merit in referring in general terms
to existing knowledge, we wonder whether it is helpful to rehearse
this in such detail in a document which seeks agreement from policy
makers on an EU strategy. It raises important issues, but there
is a danger of the main messages being lost in the detail. In
its Annual Policy Strategy,[30]
the Commission says that it intends to ask the Budgetary Authority
for 1280 extra staff. We appreciate that this document was not
produced for a general audience, but we do question whether the
Commission always makes best use of its resources in producing,
for wide circulation, Communications of such length as this, and
of which this is far from being an isolated example.
12.13 The
former Minister refers to the Bonn Political Declaration. We
understand that the Government sensed that the Commission was
suggesting in this Communication that a formal system should be
set up, whereby the EC would decide how the contributions of the
Member States to the funds pledged by the EU+ group would be spent.
We understand that a number of Member States were opposed to
any such notion and the Commission has not pursued it. There
has, however, been agreement that the EU strategy should concentrate
on helping developing countries to adapt to climate change.
12.14 The
extent to which developing countries should take action to prevent
climate change is covered by the UN Framework Convention on Climate
Change. It recognises the special situation of developing countries
and espouses the concept of common but differentiated responsibilities
and capabilities, requiring developed countries to take the lead
in combating climate change.
12.15 We clear
the document but ask the Minister to provide us with an update
in due course on the development of this strategy. In particular,
we ask whether agreement was reached on what contribution should
be expected of developing countries towards the global effort
to mitigate climate change.
24 Established under UN auspices in 1988 in order to
provide a scientific assessment on climate change. Its first assessment
report in 1990 led to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC). Back
25
Climate change is caused by rising concentrations of greenhouse
gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere, released primarily by the combustion
of fossil fuels and from agriculture and land-use changes. The
GHGs cause the atmosphere to retain more of the infrared heat
radiated from the Earth's surface, thus leading to a gradual rise
in global temperature. Back
26
The Commission says that all the scientific information and statements
in the introduction to the Communication are from the Third Assessment
report of the IPCC (2001). Back
27
The development goals in the UN Millennium Declaration include
eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary
education, promoting gender equality, reducing child mortality,
improving maternal health, combatting AIDS, malaria and other
diseases, and ensuring environmental sustainability. Back
28
The UNFCCC was signed by 154 countries at the Earth Summit in
Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 and came into effect on 21 March 1994.It
represents a concerted effort to tackle global warming occurring
as a result of human-induced climate change. Back
29
This group consists of the EC and the Member States, plus Canada,
Iceland, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland. Back
30
(24330) 7229/03;see HC 63-xxii (2002-03), paragraph 2 (21 May
2003). Back
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