Day: June 10, 2023

Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and COP28 president-designate, recently met with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission (EC), and reaffirmed their commitment to work together to facilitate the ‘highest possible ambition’ for this year’s COP28 climate conference. The leaders released a joint statement following a meeting at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Also attending the meeting were Franz Timmermans, EU Commission executive and vice president for the European Green Deal; Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy; Ambassador Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, United Arab Emirates (UAE) Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Special Envoy to the EU; and Mohamed Al Sahlawi, UAE ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium. The statement highlighted a common vision for a just energy transition that leaves no one behind and that promotes policies and investments that scale up renewable energy while working towards an energy system that is free of unabated fossil fuels while ensuring energy security, accessibility and affordability. Dr. Al Jaber said, ‘Europe, and the European Union, are already playing a leading role in climate action, and will be vital and trusted partners at COP28. We appreciate the European Commission’s support for our call to triple renewable energy by 2030. We can’t achieve our shared objectives unless we work together in a collective effort.’ The COP28 president-designate and EC president urged all governments to align their national efforts with the shared commitment to achieve the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement, including pursuing efforts to keep global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach. With the first Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement concluding at COP28, the leaders also agreed on the importance of ensuring that it informs climate action going forward, setting out pathways for emissions reductions, enhanced resilience and finance flows that are aligned with climate objectives. Both organizations will work together in multiple areas to drive a just energy transition, including targeting tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030 and doubling clean hydrogen by unlocking global cross-border trade. Operationalizing funding arrangements for the loss and damage fund to assist the most vulnerable communities was seen as key, with both parties supporting the full implementation of the USD100 billion delivery plan so that the goal can be met in 2023. Doubling adaptation finance from 2019 levels will help ensure that all countries remain focused on supporting climate action, and the COP28 presidency and the EC will also look to deliver on commitments made on existing facilities, such as the Green Climate Fund. Both organizations will also look to lay the groundwork for a larger mobilization of climate finance from all sources that meets the needs of developing countries to embark on the energy transition. This will include advancing reforms to existing international financial institutions and identifying innovative mechanisms that will accelerate climate action and unlock private finance flow to emerging markets and developing economies. ‘Capital will be key across every climate pillar – and what I have heard repeatedly on my travels is that climate finance is nowhere near available, affordable or accessible enough,’ Dr. Al Jaber said. The Commission also expressed its support for the initiative of the incoming COP28 presidency to organize the first-ever health day and climate-health ministerial. The European Commission and the incoming COP28 presidency intend to maintain close coordination at the political and technical level in the coming months, working together at a number of events. These include the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact on June 22 and 23, Ministerial on Climate Action on July 13 and 14, G20 Energy Ministers Meeting on July 22, G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Ministers Meeting on July 28, G20 Leaders Summit on Sept. 9 and 10, UN Secretary General’s Climate Summit on Sept. 20, and multiple regional political fora around the world. ‘Combatting climate change will require a collective effort – and that means everyone, everywhere’ Dr. Al Jaber said. ‘We need solidarity, unity and partnership across all sectors and between all stakeholders to move from goals to getting it done. COP28 must be a COP of action and a COP for all if we are to deliver the system-wide transformation that the world needs.’ Over the course of his visit to Brussels, Dr. Al Jaber also held meetings with Charles Michel, president of the European Council.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Government funds and food packs are available for those who will be affected by the possible eruption of Mayon Volcano, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said on Saturday. Marcos made the assurance after Albay province was placed under a state of calamity on Friday as Mayon increased its abnormal activities. In a Facebook post, the President urged affected residents to heed the instructions and directives of their local government officials to ensure their safety. ‘Sa pagsasailalim sa probinsya ng Albay sa state of calamity dahil sa pag-aalburoto ng Bulkang Mayon, pinapaalalahanan ang ating mga kababayang Bikolano na sumunod lamang sa mga rekomendasyon at evacuation instructions ng inyong lokal na pamahalaan upang masiguro ang kaligtasan ng bawat isa (With the declaration of a state of calamity in Albay due to Mayon Volcano’s restiveness, we are reminding Bicolano residents to follow the recommendation and evacuation instructions of your local officials to ensure everyone’s safety),’ he said. He said residents who are within the 6-km. radius permanent danger zone are being evacuated. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), he added, is on standby with assistance and support for the evacuees. The department has PHP114 million worth of Quick Response Fund, PHP5 million in standby fund, and 179,000 family food packs (FPPs) in Disaster Response Centers. Apart from DSWD, concerned agencies, such as the Office of Civil Defense, the departments of agriculture, health, and environment, as well as the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), are in constant communication, Marcos said. The DSWD has also readied a PHP67.8-million fund and 814,758 FFPs in other field offices to support the relief needs of areas affected by Mayon’s seismic activities. About PHP1.04 billion worth of other food and non-food items are also available at the National Resource Operations Center in Pasay City, Visayas Disaster Resource Center, and DSWD field offices’ warehouses. Mayon remains on Alert Level 3 with “a possibility of a hazardous eruption.’ Data from the Albay Public Safety Emergency Management Office showed 4,390 families or 16,823 individuals from nine municipalities namely, Camalig, Daraga, Guinobatan, Ligao City, Malilipot, Tabaco City, Sto. Domingo, Bacacay and Legazpi City, are affected. Another 40,000 individuals are set to be evacuated from the 7-km extended danger zone if Mayon’s status is escalated to Alert Level 4. Phivolcs said possible hazards that can occur are rockfalls, landslides or avalanches; ballistic fragments; lava flows and lava fountaining; pyroclastic density currents; and moderate-sized explosions. Alert Level 3, according to Phivolcs, means magma is near or at the surface, and activity could lead to hazardous eruption in weeks. Occurrence of low-frequency earthquakes, volcanic tremor, and rumbling sounds are also likely. Danger zones may be expanded up to eight kilometers from the active crater. Meanwhile, due to the state of calamity, the Department of Energy announced Saturday a price freeze for household liquefied petroleum gas in cylinders (11 kilograms and below) and kerosene products in Albay. Price increases are prohibited but rollbacks are allowed. It will be in effect for 15 days since the declaration, or until June 23.

Source: Philippines News Agency

The Police Regional Office (PRO) 13 (Caraga) said 7,393 citation tickets have been issued to violators apprehended during the weeklong intensified drive on the ‘No Plate, No Travel’ policy in the region. Of the total number of citation tickets, 7,368 were issued to motorcycle drivers, and 25 to drivers of four-wheeled vehicles. In a statement on Saturday, PRO-13 Director, Brig. Gen. Pablo Labra II, said the intensified drive was conducted from May 31 to June 9 by their units and stations in the whole region. ‘The drive was aimed to prevent incidents of carnapping of motorcycles and crimes perpetrated by riding-in-tandem,’ Labra said, urging the region’s residents to always adhere to traffic laws. He added that most stolen motorcycles were parked unattended outside the residences of owners. ‘Thieves usually remove the plates of stolen motorcycles to make them difficult to be traced by authorities,’ Labra said. During the campaign, a total of 102 motorcycles were impounded by various police stations in the region. ‘PRO-13 has deployed more policemen to the streets and communities to conduct checkpoints and increase visibility,’ he said. He added that on May 31, the Regional Highway Patrol Unit 13 and the Regional Intelligence Division 13 also conducted a checkpoint at the main gate of the PRO-13 headquarters and inspected the vehicles of all police officers to ensure that they are not using impounded unregistered and stolen cars or motorcycles.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Authorities confiscated PHP2.9 million worth of smuggled cigarettes during an operation in Zamboanga del Sur on Friday that also resulted in the arrest of four suspects. Col. Diomarie Albarico, Zamboanga del Sur Police director, said on Saturday that suspects Ronilo Japon, 25; Ricky Baria, 40; Abdulhaver Kangan, 41; and Jallen Mabuting, 22, all residents of Pagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur, were arrested at 3:12 p.m. in Barangay Balimbingan, Labangan town. They were in the middle of unloading boxes of cigarettes from two trucks when joint operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and Labangan Municipal Police Station arrived and accosted them. Seized from the operation were at least 85 master cases of undocumented cigarettes worth PHP2,975,000 and two trucks.

Source: Philippines News Agency