PRETORIA, — South African Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa has left for Canada, where she will participate in the Ministerial Meeting on Climate Action taking place in Montreal this week.

The meeting is a platform for participating countries to give their input on the political direction which should be taken on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations, the Department of Environmental Affairs said in a statement here Monday.

Minister Edna Molewa is attending the meeting at the invitation of the government of Canada, in collaboration with China and the European Union (EU). Dr Molewa will participate in this first meeting on climate change in 2017, following the announcement of the United States of America’s intention to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord, it added.

The Paris Climate Accord is a legal framework which brings together both developed and developing countries together under the UNFCCC, with a view of collaborating in efforts to fight climate change impacts.

The Montreal meeting is a replacement of the Major’s Economy Forum Meeting, which was previously hosted by the United States, while still actively seeking to resolve difficult negotiation issues under the UNFCCC.

The UNFCCC negotiations are currently focused on technical discussions, including the so-called “Paris Agreement rulebook, which is key to the implementation of the Paris Climate Accord. Molewa will share South Africa’s views on the current UNFCCC negotiations at the meeting.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK