The Council of Ministers of the Central American Commission on Environment and Development (CCAD), the environmental agency of the Central American Integration System (SICA), under the President Pro Tempore of Belize, approved the Regional Strategy on Climate Change (ER-CC) in XLVII Regular Meeting, held in Belize City on 10 and 11 November this year. In this way fulfills the mandate in the Declaration of the Summit of Presidents and Heads of State of the SICA countries held last July 20, 2010 in San Salvador.

The ER-CC is the result of an intense political and scientific-technical work originated in 2008 with the instructions of the Heads of State Presidents and members of SICA Summit in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, to respond as a highly vulnerable region to the challenges of global warming and climate variability. This process, participatory and negotiations in recent months, culminating in this international instrument sector, effective implementation of which will be accompanied by an action plan for implementation in member countries of SICA.

To develop this document included the political leadership of the Council of Ministers of the CCAD and the support of the Technical Committee on Climate Change (CT-CC). The ER-CC is the instrument harmonized regional policy of last generation that sets guidelines and regional measures and complementary added value to national actions SICA countries to meet the challenges and opportunities posed to regional climate change. Soon it will be published in the CCAD website and will be presented at the Sixteenth Conference of the Parties (COP16) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to be held in Cancun, Mexico from November 29 to December 10 of the currents.

On the other hand, the external donor support has been important for the entire process of institutional strengthening of the CCAD, the work of the Technical Committee on Climate Change, the operation of the Climate Change Unit in the Executive Secretariat and the process CCAD expanded query formulation and the same at the regional level and country.

Undoubtedly the adoption of the Regional Strategy on Climate Change, is a milestone for regional integration by enabling a harmonized policy instrument of last generation, to guide the Central American common position in the global environment and in international negotiations on Climate Change .

For more information contact the Coordinator ai CCAD, Roberto Rodríguez Rojas.