Mafikeng - The signing of an agreement that will frame future bilateral co-operation on climate change issues between the North West province and Manitoba province in Canada is in the pipeline, said the North West MEC for Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Rural Development Boitumelo Tshwene.
Delivering his Budget Vote on Tuesday, Tshwene said global climate change is a threat to sustainable development.
Tshwene said the two provinces are coordinating a possible co-operation agreement aimed at developing a climate change strategy for the North West province.
"So far the coordination team has managed to develop terms of reference on the proposed project and has submitted it to the Manitoba province," Tshwene said.
He said climate change could undermine global poverty alleviation efforts and have severe implications for food security, clean water, energy supply, environmental health and human settlements. He added that it was clear that the developing world faces greater challenges than the developed world.
"With some assistance from the national department of environmental affairs, we hope to get the process off the ground during this financial year.
"Our country is also beginning to witness and feel the effects of climate change which is possibly the greatest environmental challenge facing the world this century," he said.
He said the department has developed the North West Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan to have coordinated and integrated biodiversity management and conservation activities in the province.
"The implementation of this strategy will thus ensure conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of its component and fair and equitable sharing of genetic resources as specified," he added
