President Paul Kagame on Sunday, December 13, stressed the essence of ambitious action on climate change. He was speaking at the extraordinary virtual Climate Ambition Summit convened by the United Nations, United Kingdom and France, in partnership with Chile and Italy, and came five years to the day since the historic Paris Agreement was adopted. In his remarks, Kagame said: “Ambitious action on climate change will make our world more resilient and healthy, and also more prosperous.” Emphasizing Rwanda’s commitment to curbing Carbon emission, Kagame said that the fact that Rwanda in May this year submitted a revised, and more ambitious, Nationality Determined Contribution under Paris Agreement reflects the country’s vision to become a developed, low-carbon economy by 2050. Nationally Determined Contribution Partnership is a global coalition of countries and institutions working to mobilize support and achieve ambitious climate goals while enhancing sustainable development. The President also said that the country intends to reduce greenhouse gas emission by 38 per cent by 2030, compared to the business-as-usual scenario. Highlighting how the target will be accomplished, Kagame said: “This will be achieved by increasing efficiency in energy production, industrial processes, waste management, transportation, and agriculture.” “We are also strengthening the resilience of our economy and ecosystems through green urbanization and nature conservation,” he added. In Paris, Rwanda joined the rest of the international community to set the goal of limiting global temperature rise, by this century, to well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Some of the major steps Rwanda took to become more resilient include establishing the Rwanda Green Fund, which has mobilised almost 200 million dollars for mitigation and adaptation investments and created close to 150,000 green jobs. The country has also prioritised reforestation and conservation and has reached more than 30 per cent of forest cover.
