Nigeria at the Rio Earth talks
United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the , Rio Earth Summit was a major United Nations conference that held for the first time in Rio de Janeiro from June 3-14 in 1992. That time, the United States was not even interested talking climate change. Well, it did talk climate change, […]
United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the , Rio Earth Summit was a major United Nations conference that held for the first time in Rio de Janeiro from June 3-14 in 1992. That time, the United States was not even interested talking climate change. Well, it did talk climate change, but not to the extent that efforts targeted at curbing global emissions would harm its companies that puffed dark stuff into the atmosphere at an alarming rate. America didn’t want to harm its own economy, and had at the time come up with its own agenda on how to achieve the same goal. The country’s president stayed away from Rio in 1992, of course. But that was the onset of any gathering of significance on the debate about curtailing man-made damages to earth. Several gatherings had taken place since then. Yet, the main issues that have been at the centre remain unresolved effectively till date – mandatory goals on issues like food security, water and energy that must be fully adhered to by all signatories. One hundred and seventy two governments participated in 1992, with one hundred and eight sending their heads of state or government. Some 2,400 representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) attended, with 17,000 people attending the parallel NGO “Global Forum” that had Consultative Status.
The issues addressed at the time included: systematic scrutiny of patterns of production — particularly the production of toxic components, such as lead in gasoline, or poisonous waste including radioactive chemicals; alternative sources of energy to replace the use of fossil fuels which are linked to global climate change; new reliance on public transportation systems in order to reduce vehicle emissions, congestion in cities and the health problems caused by polluted air and smog; and the growing scarcity of water. An important achievement was an agreement on the Climate Change Convention which in turn led to the Kyoto Protocol. Another agreement was to “not carry out any activities on the lands of indigenous peoples that would cause environmental degradation, or that would be culturally inappropriate. Since then, two important legally binding agreements have been opened for signature: These were the Convention on Biological Diversity, and Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). However, many of the agreements made in Rio have not been realized regarding such fundamental issues as fighting poverty and cleaning up the environment.
The 2012 Rio Earth Summit or Rio+20, which was so-named because this year marked the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) was meant to further build on the momentum already generated. The UN says the Summit represents another milestone in ongoing international efforts to accelerate progress towards achieving sustainable development globally. It says the aim is to secure renewed political commitment for sustainable development, assess the progress to date, and address new and emerging challenges. For this purpose, this year’s gathering focuses on two themes: Green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication, as well as Institutional framework for sustainable development. But the objectives included securing political commitment to sustainable development; assessing progress towards internationally agreed commitments, and considering new and emerging challenges.
When Brazil’s president, Dilma Rousseff, welcomed leaders such as Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan to Rio de Janeiro on June 20, he did amidst barrage of criticisms that the gathering was just another jamboree. From the draft documents ahead of the event, it was clear that the summit fell short of its promise to establish clear goals for sustainable development. That was not the first time such criticism would trail an earth summit. But this bites hardest. Environmentalists and activist groups say the document is weak. Even the UN that has an interest in this admits as much: “Let me be frank: Our efforts have not lived up to the measure of the challenge,” U.N. secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, said in his opening remarks. But he felt he and his organization were on the right track and that was why they forged on: “Nature does not wait. “Nature does not negotiate with human beings,” he had stated
Yet the host country was predictably excited even though the document laid out aspirations, rather than mandatory goals, on issues like food security, water and energy. The document also called for countries to pursue “sustainable development goals,” which is a vague set of U.N. objectives built around the environment, economic growth and social inclusion. And it was bereft of specifics, crucial specifics. Britain’s deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, was not excited about it at all. “I was disappointed that we did not go further,” he had said.
Other European leaders criticized “shortcomings” in the document, especially a failure by U.N. members to fortify its existing environmental program and transform it into a full-fledged agency. Expectations that the gathering would be a huge success had been low before it started. This, at a time when many leaders are more focused on the global economic slowdown and the debt crisis in Europe. Some of the attendees had just left a meeting in Mexico of the Group of 20 major economies where Greece and other European problems were at issue.
Except for the French president and the Russian and Chinese prime ministers, several other high-profile leaders were missing. That included U.S. President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Compared with the original Earth Summit twenty years ago, which led to historic decisions on biodiversity and greenhouse gas emissions, organizers said this summit was only the beginning of a new goal-setting process for global development. But critics have further pointed out that the gathering was just an effort on the part of Brazil to showcase its city as it prepares to host the World Cup and Olympics in a couple of years. Ultimately, it was noted in every circle that local and domestic initiatives, by governments and the private sector, are more likely to improve the environment than slow-moving global diplomacy. But that counted for nothing here in Nigeria where, in spite of more pressing security challenges, some said the Rio trip was a must for the president.
Ajibade, lives in Abuja. [email protected]