South Asia has already experienced increases in mean temperature and precipitation,and increasing frequency and ferocity of extreme weather events,bringing with them higher risks of floods,landslides and droughts. Between 1990 and 2008, more than 750 million people—50 percent of the region’s population—were affected by a natural disaster, leaving almost 60,000 dead and resulting in about $45 billion in damages. The ice mass covering the Himalayan-Hindu Kush mountain range is the source of the nine largest rivers of Asia, including the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Indus. Glacial melt coupled with more variable precipitation could severely compromise livelihoods and the future prospects of agriculture.South Asia has the highest density of poverty in the world,with an estimated 600 million South Asians subsisting on less than $1.25 a day, even small climate shocks can cause irreversible losses and tip a large number of people into destitution.

To address these terrible isssues, some initiatives have already been taken.The SAARC Environment Ministers adopted the SAARC Action Plan and Declaration on Climate Change at the SAARC Environment Ministerial Meeting in Dhaka in July 2008.But a definite goal had to be made by the South Asian countries prior to the most awaited COP15 this December.

The Government of Nepal hosted the South Asia Regional Climate Change Conference: “From Kathmandu to Copenhagen: A Vision for Addressing Climate Change Risks and Opportunities in the Himalaya Region” on August 31 – September 1, 2009  in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the World Bank, the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA)and the UK Department for International Development (DFID).Following this conference,South Asian Youth Summit on Climate Change(SAYSoCC) was held in Dhulikhel from 3rd to 6th September,2009.

These consecutive conferences in the most vulnerable South Asian country have compelled the developed parts of the world to think on reducing their carbon emission and assisting these underdeveloped and developing countries to cope up with the risk of climate change.

The Kathmandu conference stressed on the need to translate the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities and historical responsibility of the developed countries as envisaged in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) into operational practice. It noted that the world had spent more on corporate/financial bailouts than on promoting sustainability and, least of all, on addressing climate change.Main highlights were:

-The countries of South Asia need to accelerate sustainable social and economic growth in accordance with the principles and provisions of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

-Water resources are particularly impacted by climate change and immediate and urgent actions are required to address these challenges through management practices including basin-wide approaches at appropriate level, and provisions of additional financial and technical resources in accordance with the provisions of the UNFCCC.

-Financing mechanism on adaptation and technologies should sufficiently meet the urgent and immediate needs of financial requirements of the South Asia region in a predictable, easy and direct manner. Finance must come from Annex 1 Parties to the UNFCCC.

-Recognition and payment for credits from the forestry sector must include a comprehensive approach to sustainable management and conservation of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

-Development and transfer of clean technologies including capacity building should take place with a view to ensure green development. Transfer of technologies should be provided by Annex 1 countries to non-Annex I countries and they should not be constrained by the high upfront costs of intellectual property rights. Appropriate indigenous technologies should also be promoted through channeling of funds to developing countries in accordance with the Convention’s provisions. Both public and private sector should be encouraged in addressing the impacts of climate change through provisions of clean technologies.

This conference was able to set a common goal of the entire South Asia region regarding the climate change challanges faced by it.

Similarly,the South Asian Youth Summit on Climate Change showed commitment to forming a youth network that will unite grass-root and country level movements across South Asia,articulating and committing to a region wide and country level strategies that will address climate change,conducting follow up events that will review progress made, plan future events and provide a venue for sharing ideas and inspiring each other,playing a major role in sensitizing the society, youth in particular, and disseminating information on climate change issues and raising awareness,creating a generation of youth who will lead a low carbon life style ensuring sustainability for inter generational equity.Moreover, the summit demanded that the governments of South Asia should agree to the MVC/AOSIS position that temperature increase should be limited to below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and CO2 concentrations should return to below 350 ppm. And ask Annex I parties that they commit to emission reduction by 45% by 2020 and 90% by 2050 with base year 1990 and emission peaking no later than 2015;remain cognizant of the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and the need to take nationally appropriate mitigation measures but also lobby for advanced developing countries inter alia India and China to take mandatory mitigation targets as well;NAMAs of developing countries financed and technologically supported by Annex I parties must not be counted towards the domestic reduction targets of developed countries and emissions must be controlled at the source;raise a unified voice for adaptation funding that is adequate, predictable, additional and sustainable to ODA and targeted to meet the adaptation needs of the most vulnerable groups and communities. Adaptation needs must be country driven and the funds must be governed under the UN processes;call on developed countries to fulfill the commitment made in Marrakesh, Morocco to fund the implementation of NAPAs;move towards a low carbon economy through the support of developed countries in terms of grants in financing and technology transfer;develop a mechanism in which Annex I parties support appropriate technology development and diffusion to the developing countries; encourage technology transfer and sharing of indigenous skills between developing countries;ensure that the policies and programs of international funding bodies fully appreciate the grave nature of climate change and are climate sensitive;establish South Asian regional center that is fully funded by Annex I parties for research, scientific development and economic diversification thereby building climate resilient socio economic systems in the developing countries;include youths in all policy matters surrounding climate change and more specifically for the inclusion of youth representatives in the official delegation to climate change negotiation. We also call on our governments to endorse the inclusion of youth as a constituency to UNFCCC negotiations.

These consecutive conferences will have little meaning unless the region lobbies hard during the Copenhagen summit in December to get the support they need .The region must be able to maintain a logical stand about how to walk the low carbon path at the cost of millions of its poor people and at the same instant,it must be able to put pressure  on setting an effective  carbon emission cap for the higly industrialised parts of the world.

[Source: Final Statement of South Asia Regional Climate Change Conference and South Asian Declaration on Climate Change]