OSCE Centre supports policy dialogue on how Kazakhstan can help fight climate change

ASTANA, 25 April 2008 - How Kazakhstan can help reduce climate change by participating in the voluntary market for trading in carbon dioxide emissions was the topic of a policy meeting organized today by the OSCE Centre in Astana, UN Development Programme in Kazakhstan and the Climate Change Co-ordination Centre of Kazakhstan.

More than 40 government representatives, international experts and potential investors discussed the role of voluntary trading mechanisms in promoting an efficient climate policy in Kazakhstan, how investment in climate-friendly technologies could be increased, as well as possible changes in the legal and institutional framework to allow for trading in carbon dioxide emissions.

"Assessments from the International Panel on Climate Change indicate that climate change already affects parts of Central Asia, for example through desertification and increased water scarcity. Efforts to mitigate climate change by introducing voluntary trading mechanisms could increase foreign investment in cleaner technologies and eventually contribute to increased security in the region," Bernard Snoy, Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities, said in a message from Vienna.

The meeting also focused on recent developments with regard to the implementation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the post-Kyoto process, which aims at establishing a global framework for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions after 2012.

"Kazakhstan can and should contribute to the global efforts to solve the problem of climate change, through a voluntary reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a sustainable use of energy," Alexander Bragin, Head of the Environment Ministry's International Department, said during the meeting.

An international conference in Astana aimed at a wider audience and potential investors in the autumn of 2008 will be held later as a follow-up to today's meeting.