Douglas Korsah-Brown, Friends of the Earth Ghana

I have been invited to speak on behalf of African NGOs in CAN. I thank the Chair for this opportunity.

The CDM is of great importance to many countries because it presents an opportunity for meaningful participation for them to save the global climate. But we must hasten to add that this process must not be hijacked by vested interests whose only motivation is profit. We must not allow this to happen or else all our efforts over the years would have been in vain. We must therefore stress that the CDM must explicitly and without controversy promote the sustainable development needs of developing countries.

The question then arises- how do we start the CDM process when we have not agreed on the ground rules for this mechanism and without compromising on the real purpose of this mechanism? How do we make the CDM workable and sustainable?

The answer to this question seems to suggest itself-CDM must deal and kick-start with a positive list of the non-contentious, credible renewable energy and demand-side technologies already in place. This would help clean technologies onto the market in developing countries that we otherwise might not get for years.

In this context we as African NGOs cannot help but mention the following key technologies:

• solar energy
• biomass
• fuel efficient stoves
• micro and mini hydro-electricity
• wind energy

If by the time the protocol enters into force this initial phase has proved successful and the full set of rules are in place, other technologies could be allowed in, however African NGOs will not and cannot accept a CDM that includes failed technologies of the industrialised world such as nuclear technology. We will not accept sinks projects in the CDM because they will prevent the technologies that will help Africa develop in a sustainable way from coming at all. Sinks projects in the Kyoto Protocol are neither a solution to climate change nor are they going to help our continent to eradicate poverty and assist Africa to move towards sustainable development.

To start the CDM with a list as I just described will help not only us in the receiving countries, but enhance the credibility of the entire Kyoto Protocol.

This statement is excerpted from Climate Action Network Intervention on Mechanisms, SB13--Lyon, September 4, 2000. Please see www.climatenetwork.org for further information.