President Ma Ying-jeou on the afternoon of March 18 met with guests attending the 2010 Taiwan and Africa Environmental Leaders Meeting, and introduced to the participants the achievements and plans of the ROC government in promoting energy conservation and reduction of carbon emissions.
The president commented that many African nations gained their independence some 50 years ago and over the decades the ROC government has dispatched agricultural missions to allied and friendly nations on the continent to provide agricultural assistance. Over time, this assistance has been expanded to the areas of light industry, health and medicine, and education. This meeting, the president said, is the first time that the ROC and African nations have engaged in interaction and cooperation on environmental topics, which is highly significant in the effort to further bolster mutual relations.
President Ma said that last October the ROC's Environmental Protection Administration Minister Stephen Shu-hung Shen attended the World Forum on Sustainable Development. This move attracted the attention of African nations and opened the door to interaction between the ROC and African nations on environmental topics. The president noted that the ROC is neither a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change nor is a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol. Nonetheless, the ROC is willing to act in step with the international community and has become one of just a few nations to voluntarily announce carbon emissions reduction goals. Likewise, the ROC was unable to send a government representative to attend the COP15 meeting in Copenhagen last year, instead being only able to have private NGOs attend the meeting. Still, the government places great importance on the conclusions from that meeting and has already introduced a draft Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Act. It is hoped that once this law is implemented, the ROC will be able to fulfill its pledges to the international community with regards to environmental protection.
The president furthermore stated that the ROC plans to reduce Taiwan's carbon emissions in the period between 2016 and 2020 to the levels of 2005. Meanwhile, the volume of carbon emissions in 2025 will be cut to levels last seen in 2000. He pointed out that in 2008 and 2009, Taiwan already reduced carbon emissions by 4.4% and 5.0%, respectively. In addition, the president said that his administration has ardently promoted energy conservation and carbon emissions reduction work since taking office. He said that he has even asked staff in the Presidential Office Building to set targets to conserve gasoline, electricity, water, and paper. While the savings so far have amounted to only about NT$7 million, the cutbacks carry enormous significance, demonstrating the government's efforts and determination to strive for environmentally sustainable development as well as the nation's willingness to shoulder its responsibility as a citizen of the world.
Lastly, the president said that it is his pleasure to have this rare opportunity to share with the guests the ROC's experiences in conserving energy and reducing carbon emissions, as well as its desire to jointly work towards creating an environment in which humanity and nature can co-exist in harmony.
The guests attending the 2010 Taiwan and Africa Environmental Leaders Meeting include: Swaziland Tourism and Environmental Affairs Minister Macford Sibandze, Gambian Forestry and Environment Minister Jato Sillah, Burkina Faso Environment and Standard of Living Minister Salif Sawadogo, Sao Tome and Principe Advisor to the Minister of Natural Resources, Energy and Environment Herculano das Neves Loi Heng, Nigerian National Assembly Committee on Climate Change Carbon Reductions Task Force Convener Daemi Kunaiyi-Akpanah, Libyan former Environment Minister Ftema Youssef Wafa, and Rose Janet Achieng Ayugi, Professor of Environmental Law at Kenya's University of Nairobi. The group was escorted to the Presidential Office Building in the afternoon by Environmental Protection Administration Minister Stephen Shu-hung Shen and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs David Y. L. Lin to meet President Ma. Also in attendance was National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General John Deng.