2 min readKathmanduDec 3, 2017 10:40 AM IST
First published on: Dec 3, 2017 at 10:40 AM IST
Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari (File)
Nepal will hold an international conference to draw attention on climate change and its adverse effects on people in the Hindu Kush mountain range. President Bidya Devi Bhandari will inaugurate the four-day long conference aimed at developing solutions for a sustainable future for Asia that could withstand the impacts of climate change.
Over 200 delegates including scientists, environmental experts, government officials, non-governmental organisations and policy makers are expected to participate in the event to be organised at the initiative of International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). The main objective of the event, held with the support of Nepal’s Ministry for Environment, is to develop solutions for resilience building, promoting regional cooperation and reducing the data gaps for sustainable mountain development, ICIMOD Director General Dr David Molden said.
For an effective response to the complex challenges facing the Hindu Kush Himalayas (HKH), multiple actors need to come together and develop a collective vision for the region’s sustainable development, ICIMOD said in a statement. “It will approach resilience building for transformative change in the HKH from a holistic perspective, viewed in the context of multiple change process in mountain areas. It also aims to deepen the commitment among concerned stakeholders and decision makers to find and implement resilience building solutions in the HKH and downstream,” Molden said.
In 2015, global leaders from 194 UN member-states agreed on the sustainable development goals (SDGs) – a set of milestones and a roadmap – for eradicating poverty and hunger and tackling climate change by 2030. Achieving the SDG target is particularly relevant in the HKH, which is home to some least developed countries, and provides water to more than 1.3 billion people.
One of the important aims of the conference is to foster partnership for action by linking to global processes and strengthening regional cooperation. Experts will deliberate on climate change and disaster risk reduction, water, food, energy security and sustainable ecosystems, eradicating poverty and promoting social and gender equality and investing in mountain livelihoods. Experts from HKH countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh Bhutan, India, Myanmar and Nepal will participate in the conference.
Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari (File)
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