29 May 2009: Representatives of the States of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group and the European Community (EC) and its member States met in Brussels, Belgium, from 28-29 May 2009, for the Joint ACP-EC Council of Ministers and adopted a joint declaration on climate change and development.

At the international level and the UNFCCC process, participants agreed to, inter alia: cooperate towards the successful conclusion of a post-2012 agreement under the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol, stressing the importance of addressing development issues in the ongoing negotiating process; enhance their consultations in the context of the international negotiations on climate change; mobilize political support for stronger action on climate change; and work together to allow ACP countries to harvest greater benefits from the potential of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).
At the level of the EC’s development cooperation with ACP States, they agreed to, inter alia: develop and/or shape meaningful cooperation activities, underlining the contribution of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Adaptation Fund and EU development assistance including bilateral actions and the Global Climate Change Alliance; cooperate to help ACP countries to adapt to climate change by reducing risks related to natural disasters and manage them better; and enhance dialogue to improve the integration of climate change considerations into ACP country and regional development and poverty reduction strategies. [ACP-EC Joint Declaration]