In his message to the International Cooperation Conference for the Reconstruction with Transformation of Guatemala, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said extreme weather events associated with climate change should underscore the need for concrete action during COP 16.
12 October 2010: The International Cooperation Conference for the Reconstruction with Transformation of Guatemala took place from 11-12 October 2010, in Guatemala City, Guatemala.
In a message delivered by Alicia Bárcena, Executive Director, UN Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon promised UN support to Guatemalans who suffered the effects of volcanic eruptions and torrential rains during 2010. He emphasized that the effects of changing weather patterns and the extreme weather events associated with climate change should underscore the need for concrete action at the upcoming Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC, which will take place at the end of the year in Cancun, Mexico. Disasters in Guatemala have been estimated to affect approximately 560 thousand people, causing economic losses amounting to 4.1% of the country’s GDP. [Ban’s Message]