The Third World Climate Conference last Friday 4th September 2009 wrapped up in Geneva, Switzerland. The conference, attended by Heads of State and Governments, International and Civil Society Organisations, had at the end of the session adopted the Global Framework for Climate Services.

The framework is envisaged to ensure that every country and every climate-sensitive sector of society is well-equipped to access and apply the growing array of climate prediction and information services.

Participants at the conference re-affirmed their commitments to stabilising the global climate as per agreement under the Kyoto Protocol, urging the international community to do more to combat climate change as they approach the Fifteenth Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Conference on Climate Change in Copenhagen in December 2009”.

In delivering a statement on behalf of the President, Antouman Saho, the Minister of Fisheries, Water Resources and National Assembly Matters re-iterated The Gambia’s recognition of the role of climate in the socio-economic development of the country and re-affirmed its commitment in combating climate change which is a prerequisite for sustainable development and progress.

 In lending support to the framework, Minister Saho reminded the conference of the challenges confronted by The Gambia, whose past, current and future development endeavours are seriously compromised by climate variability and climate change.

He, therefore, called on the conference to ensure that the framework takes into consideration the prevailing capacity gaps between countries and peoples, and to provide the required support to enhance capacity in the implementation of the proposed framework in order to have the desired impacts.

The delegation paid a courtesy call on the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organisation, who hailed President Jammeh’s commitment to climate change being the first Head of State to accept the invitation to attend the conference. This, according to him, was a key impetus in getting other Heads of State and Governments to the conference.

The Gambian delegation to the conference comprised Hon. Antouman Saho, the Minister of Fisheries, Water Resources and National Assembly Matters, Hon. Abdoulie Sallah, Secretary-General Office of the President and Head of the Civil Service, and Mr. Lamin Nyabally, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Fisheries, Water Resources and National Assembly Matters.

Also part of the delegation was Mr. Bai Ibrahim Jobe, the Permanent Secretary at the Office of the President, Mr. Moses Benjamin Jallow, Ambassador of The Gambia to the Republic of France and Mr. Bernard Edward Gomez, Principal Meteorologist and Permanent Representative of The Gambia with WMO, Department of Water Resources.