1st LD Writethru: UN General Assembly president welcomes adoption of new climate accord

UN General Assembly President Mogens Lykketoft on Saturday welcomed the adoption of Paris Agreement to tackle climate change, saying that "this agreement reaffirms the value of multilateralism in addressing global challenges."

The president "welcomes the adoption of the Paris Agreement at the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change," said a statement issued here by his spokesperson.

"Today's agreement signals nothing less than a renaissance for humankind as we collectively embrace the global challenge of climate change and endeavor to transition to a more sustainable way of living that respects the needs of people and our planet," the statement said.

The historic Paris Agreement on climate change is finally adopted Saturday by the 196 Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) during the COP21 hosted by France.

The new agreement has 31 pages with 29 articles, including objective, mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage, finance, technology development and transfer, capacity building, and transparency of action and support.

On the basis of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, the Paris Agreement calls for aiming to hold global average temperature rise to below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and strives for limiting the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

"This is a turning point in human history that brought us all together in a global effort to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C," the statement said. "This agreement reaffirms the value of multilateralism in addressing global challenges."

The General Assembly congratulated the French presidency of the Conference on successfully steering this process and all Parties to the Convention on their constructiveness and determination to reach this outcome, said the statement.

"This Agreement lays the foundations to achieve the transformation to a low-emission and climate-resilient global economy," the statement said. "This Agreement signals a transformation that seeks to achieve sustainable development and poverty eradication, while preserving planet's integrity for future generations."

"Ambition, action and equity shall remain the guiding principles in this critical phase," said Lykketoft. "I will not spare any effort to engage with Member States and other relevant stakeholders, including business and civil society, to kick start implementation and create an opportunity to catalyze action on key issues such as finance, data, technology and partnerships."

The UN General Assembly High Level Thematic Debate on Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals from April 11-12 2016 will provide a platform for new initiatives and, building on the outcome of COP21, will look to how climate action can support the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, it added. Endit