Morocco to organise forum on climate targets

Will review scale and scope of collective efforts to regulate greenhouse gases in lead up to Paris COP21 Rabat, Morocco, October 7, 2015: UNDP, has announced that an Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) Forum is being organised by the Government of Morocco, the European Commission, UNDP and UNEP on October 12-13 at Rabat, Morocco. The Forum, UNDP informed, will consider the aggregate impact of INDCs, which serve as the backbone of the Paris climate change agreement, to be agreed at COP21 in December. According to UNDP, as of October 6, 120 INDCs have been submitted, representing 147 countries and approximately 85% of global carbon emissions, and while more are expected, a process is currently under way to determine the aggregate impact of those received. The Forum will reportedly bring together policy makers, government officials, including those at the ministerial or equivalent level, expert organisations and lead voices from academia, the private sector and civil society. The Forum will comprise a science/policy dialogue on October 12 and a high-level roundtable policy discussion on October 13 by representatives from governments and international organisations to create a safe space to promote open and frank exchanges. The Forum’s avowed aim is to recognise and celebrate that the INDCs received will represent an unprecedented scale and scope at collective efforts to regulate greenhouse gases; acknowledge the likely aggregate effect of the INDCs received on future global average temperatures; and promote a global policy response that rises to the challenge, for example by considering ways to regularly review and strengthen government actions and to leverage the potential offered by the “action agenda”.