ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The African group of climate negotiators are taking an active role at the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 25) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in the Spanish capital, Madrid, the African Union (AU) Commission disclosed on Wednesday.
According to the AU, the COP 25, which runs from December 2 to 13, has brought together different institutions dealing with climate-related issues.
"The African Union delegation to the COP 25 in Madrid has remarkably contributed to all the meetings and activities organized to discuss ways and strategies aimed at mitigating the devastating impact of climate change on humanity in general and the African people in particular," an AU statement issued Wednesday read.
Noting the active participation of African climate negotiators with particular emphasis on the major priorities of Africa in the climate sector, the AU also stressed that the delegation is actively convening across "several high-level meetings aimed at sharing views on ways to find lasting solutions to the negative effect of climate change in the world."
According to the 55-member pan African bloc, one of such meetings was the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment, which took place on December 8, under the chairmanship of the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries of South Africa.
"During the meeting, the Africa Group of Negotiators provided an overview of the negotiations and key issues for Africa's attention for COP 25, as well as Africa's special circumstances," the AU said, adding that issues related with market mechanisms and transparency under the Paris Agreement as well as finance and the Green Climate Fund were also said to be among the priority areas of African climate negotiators.
The African group also presented updates on key African initiatives including the Africa Adaptation Initiative and the African Renewable Energy Initiative.
The AU stressed that the COP 25 is expected to take the "next crucial steps in the UN climate change process with the view to complete several matters with respect to the full operationalization of the Paris Climate Change Agreement among others."
