Belgium commits to climate protection on the International Day of Peace
On 21 September, we celebrate the International Day of Peace. This year’s theme is “Climate Action for Peace”. Right up our alley as Belgium is committed to the fight against climate change.
During the high-level week of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Belgium will participate, alongside other Member States, in the “Climate Action Summit” on 23 September. Governments, local authorities, civil society, the private sector and youth will all be brought together at this important time of collective mobilization to renew our mutual commitments and accelerate the implementation of the Paris Agreement, both in terms of limiting greenhouse gas emissions and adapting our society to climate change.
In addition, Belgium will co-organize and participate in various climate-related side events of the General Assembly. More particularly, as a member of the “Group of Friends on Climate and Security”, Belgium will call on the Secretary-General of the United Nations to produce a biannual report on the subject, accompanied by concrete recommendations. Our country will also promote the idea of a “climate security mechanism” to increase knowledge and management of climate-related security risks.
As a non-permanent member of the Security Council, Belgium has placed the “climate and security” link at the heart of its action and is taking every opportunity to integrate the issue of climate change into the work of the Security Council. Several texts adopted this year contain a reference to climate in resolutions on Somalia and Mali, larger regions such as Central and West Africa, and even the African continent as a whole, in support to the African Union’s initiative “Silencing the Guns by 2020”.
True to its slogan “Fostering consensus, acting for peace”, Belgium is relentlessly advocating to convince all stakeholders that the fight against climate change is crucial to effective peacebuilding.