16th December 2009


Statement delivered by the Rt Hon. Nahas Angula, Prime Minister of the Republic of Namibia, on behalf of H.E. Hifikepunye Pohamba, President of the Republic of Namibia, on the occasion of the high level segment of the fifteenth session of the conference of the parties (cop15) to the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC), 15 December 2009, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Madam President
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am honoured to deliver this statement on behalf of my President, H.E. Hifikepunye Pohamba, President of the Republic of Namibia. I would like to express the appreciations of Namibia’s delegation to the government and people of Denmark and the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) for the excellent arrangements made for this Conference. We look forward to adopt concrete outcomes of this Fifteenth Conference of Parties (COP15) which should pave the way for a comprehensive, ambitious and legally binding international agreement on climate change, with quantifiable actions and deadlines that are commensurate with urgency that climate change deserves.

Madam President,

Namibia is vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Our economic productive activities, from agriculture to fisheries, mining and tourism fully depend on our natural resource base, namely water, land, soils, rainfall, and vegetation. We need to prevent potential decline on our productive system. Namibia is a net sink in terms of greenhouse gases. Namibia’s contribution to climate change is negligible, yet the country is disproportionately affected by climate change and its associated impacts.

This Conference of the Parties is called upon to improve and strengthen our international relations and agreements in a way that they address the root causes of the problems and not merely deal with the symptoms. Climate change is real, affecting adversely the livelihoods of those who are poorest. We are called upon to address climate change together within the framework of the Convention, in particular the principle of common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities. We strongly advocate for the retention and strengthening of the Kyoto Protocol.

There has been a notable increase in the frequency and severity of disasters in Namibia. Communities survive droughts only to fall into flooding, veld and forest fires and disease outbreaks which may be accentuated by climate change.

Namibia experienced three drought episodes requiring state intervention between 2002 and 2007. The number of people affected by droughts increased from 345,000 in the 2002/3 season to 523,000 in 2006/7 season in the population of two million people.

Floods have occurred every year between 2004 and 2009 affecting between 12,000 to 677,542 people in the same period in six of the thirteen regions of the country. The 2008 and 2009 floods were the worst ever recorded in the history of Namibia. The World Bank and United Nations Development Programme who carried out post disaster needs assessment (PDNA) in Namibia reported damages to the infrastructure to the amount totalling US$ 136.4 million and US$78.2 million losses due to the 2009 flood in the productive, social and infrastructure sectors. This economic impacts as a result of flood, represents a reduction of 1.1 percent of the 2009 Gross Domestic Product growth. A staggering US$662million will be required for recovery and reconstruction.

Madam President,

It is not my intention to catalogue the costs that climate related disasters have caused to our economy. However, I want to emphasise that international cooperating partners need to respond timely and resourcefully when a disaster strikes. Namibia needs financial support and technologies that are proven and adaptable to our situations. We need early warning systems on regional and local levels and most of all resources to contribute towards poverty reduction efforts as a consequence of disasters.

Madam President
Your Excellencies

Namibia invites those countries who remain outside the international climate change mechanism to play their role in addressing climate change. Namibia further invites all countries with proven, adaptable, appropriate and advanced technologies especially on renewable and after energy to partner with us so that we can engage in productive mutual beneficial technology transfer arrangement.

Namibia calls for adequate and predictable financial support for adaptation, technology development and transfer and capacity building. Namibia fully supports African common position on climate change. We are concerned about the existing huge gaps with regard to the fulfilment of developed countries commitments under the Kyoto Protocol. Namibia strongly urges the developed country Parties to take concrete action now to meet their commitments under the Convention and the Kyoto Protocol, reduce greenhouse emissions and provide financial support and transfer technology to developing countries.

We urge all Parties to strive for a consensus to a fair, ambitious and just international Agreement on climate change during the current Session of the Conference of Parties.

I thank you!