2 September 2011: A training workshop held from 31 August- 2 September 2011 was organized under the auspices of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to develop and implement measures for Member States to access available funds for and assess the status of international negotiations on climate change. Capacity building measures for implementing Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) as well as for negotiators from the region were also assessed.

During the three-day event, member States were urged to intensify measures to implement NAMAs in spite of the fact that NAMAs are still a concept that is being developed. Ousseini Salifou, ECOWAS Commissioner for Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources, cautioned against repeating the negative experiences the region has had with the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and stressed that building capacity would positively affect current mechanisms for implementing NAMAs.

Taking stock of the ongoing international climate change negotiations, participants called for a consensus that will benefit developing countries. They were also reminded that through the development and implementation of NAMAs, opportunities for advancing development in key sectors such as energy, agriculture and infrastructure would be presented. Edward Osei Nsenkryire, Chairman of Ghana’s National Climate Change Committee, called for NAMAs and other climate change response measures to be clearly linked with the livelihoods of people in order to enhance the abilities of African countries to cope with climate change. [ECOWAS Press Release]