Climate info portal opened

The National Weekender

By PETER S KINJAP
IT’S BEEN quite a while in hibernation due to some problems relating to my PC.
Happy belated 44th anniversary. I’m back to cover few more challenging and exciting climate change stories form around PNG that come my way. Thanks for your patience.
To those avid readers of the column, stay tuned for more climate stories, on both environment threatening hazards and economic opportunities for PNG. Below are few highlights during the month of September on climate change.
The recent launching of the climate change portal and communication strategy will enable the public in PNG and the region to access information. Led by the Climate Change and Development Authority (CCDA), the portal will provide relevant data for decision making on climate change programmes in the country.
The strategy is part of the PNG Government’s initiative through the CCDA to address the challenges and impacts of climate change encountered by communities.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative Dirk Wagener during the launching in Port Moresby also highlighted the importance of sufficient information that would generate national and international support to address climate change.
CCDA managing director Ruel Yamuna said climate change information sharing was important in the national approach to address the crisis.
PNG country-specific climate change information is very vital. Both Yamuna and Wagener talked about the need for nationally-tailored climate change information that looks at issues face by rural communities which are unique to the rest of the world.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister James Marabe in his PNG’s 44th independence anniversary speech on Sept 16 said for a nation of over thousand tribes, who speak over 830 different languages, from the highlands to lowlands, the entire 462,840 square kilometers of land blendited unity in diversity. We are the most diverse nation on the face of the earth.
Addressing climate crises in the midst of our national diversity requires country-specific data, in particular looking at our untouched and virgin tropical rainforests that stands to contribute in addressing the global climate crisis.
Also in September, CCDA, Department of National Planning and Monitoring (DNPM), Department of Provincial and Local Government Affairs (DPLGA) and Australian High Commission collectively selected Milne Bay, New Ireland and Enga as the first three provinces to pilot the Green Resilient Green Growth (CRGG) project.
The project is funded by an intergovernmental organisation based in Seoul, South Korea known as GGGI (Global Green Growth Institute). PNG and Australia are both funding members of GGGI and they have signed a Climate Action plan in May 2018, reaffirming their commitment to work in partnership on addressing climate crisis.
The pilot project in the three provinces costing USD4.4 million (K14.9 million) will be implemented by CCDA with GGGI to create climate resilience and green growth priorities for the provinces into mobilising climate finance projects into the provinces and districts.
“Australia is committed to partnering with PNG in addressing climate change. This is a collaborative initiative that will support the planning and implementation of innovative projects that mobilises investment and deliver green growth impact on the ground,” said Benedict David, Minister Counsellor, Australian High Commission.
Results and lessons learned from the delivery of the CRGG in the initial pilot provinces of New Ireland, Milne Bay and Enga will support the expansion and scale-up of the project in other provinces.
“Delivering impactful projects in these initial pilot provinces is just the first step in the efforts of all development partners to achieve sustainable green growth and inclusive climate resilience in all 22 provinces in the country,” said Achala Abeysinghe, GGGI Country Representative in PNG.
GGGI delivers programmes in over 30 partner countries with technical support, capacity building, policy planning and implementation, and by helping to build a pipeline of bankable green investment projects.

  •  Peter Kinjap is a freelancer with focus on climate change in PNG and its impacts, email: [email protected]