KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) — The Government has taken steps to ensure that Jamaica derives significant benefits from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), which has been established to support the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

This was disclosed by Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Daryl Vaz, during his 2017/18 Sectoral Debate presentation in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, April 25, under the theme ‘Cementing our Gains… Creating a Prosperous Future’.Vaz indicated that the administration, through the Commonwealth Secretariat, has engaged a financial advisor to support the development of a comprehensive programme and portfolio of projects consistent with the GCF’s investment priorities.“We have embarked on a process that will see 12 sector strategies and action plans completed in short order. In their implementation, we will ensure that resilience is built in our systems to support the movement towards a green economy. We are cementing our gains to create a prosperous future for all Jamaicans,” Vaz said.The Paris Agreement brings all nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and adapt to its effects, with enhanced support to assist developing countries.The central aim is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.Vaz pointed out that Jamaica is among the growing number of countries ratifying the Agreement, describing this as a “monumental achievement”.He emphasised that this was indicative of Jamaica’s commitment to the long-term goal of the agreement.