Participants at a previous climate change event, held in association with USAID. CCCS23
The Ministry of Environment, together with the Mekong Future initiative, is set to host the two-day Cambodia Climate Change Summit 2023 (CCCS23) on November2 and 3 in Siem Reap province. The occasion will bring together key stakeholders and experts from around Southeast Asia to engage in the broadest range of high-level climate discussions.
The event will take place in Siem Reap town, and will cover topics as diverse as climate financing, the role of renewable energy, energy entrepreneurship, nature-based solutions, water security, innovation in agriculture, sustainable tourism and regulatory compliance.
The plenary session will feature a keynote address by environment minister Eang Sophalleth and remarks from representatives from the Australian and US embassies, along with other institutions, according to an October 16 joint press release by the ministry and Mekong Future.
Through its flagship economic development programme – the Cambodia Australia Partnership for Resilient Economic Development (CAPRED) – Australia is an official partner of CCCS23, with further sponsorship by founding partner the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
Other partners include the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), OXFAM and Kosher Climate, with additional sponsors to be announced in the lead-up to the event.
“I am delighted Australia is the official partner of the CCCS23. Australia is committed to working with Cambodia to strengthen its resilience to climate change, build a clean energy sector, and meet its climate-neutral target by 2050,” the release quoted Australian ambassador Justin Whyatt as saying.
“Australia’s flagship economic development programme, CAPRED, will host sessions on climate-smart agriculture, pathways to climate-resilient clean water supply and inclusive climate finance,” he added.
US ambassador W Patrick Murphy said the US is “honoured” to support the summit again this year in collaboration with other stakeholders.
“Donors, NGOs, and public and private sector partners can work together to help Cambodia combat the negative effects of climate change and reach carbon neutrality by 2050. The summit is an excellent opportunity for information sharing and partnership building among key stakeholders working on climate change here in Cambodia, regionally, and globally,” he said.
A Sustainable Solutions Expo, sponsored by the SDC, will feature climate-focused initiatives and products.
“We need to make sure that the many already existing technologies and services to mitigate and adapt to climate change are put into practice,” said SDC director of cooperation Markus Burli.
“The Sustainable Solutions Expo will showcase some of them and how they are applied in Cambodia,” he added.
The summit has been held annually since 2021. The 2022 event, CCCS22, was the first carbon-neutral conference while CCCS23 will be the first to be fully offset by carbon credits.
