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Launching of Human Development Report 2007/2008, at Hotel Tropico.

Luanda, 26 February 2008 - UNDP Angola jointly with the Ministry of Urbanism and Environment launched the Human Development Report 2007/2008, entitled ‘Fighting the Climate Change: Human Solidarity in a Divided World’, this is the 18 th HDR edition, resulting from a world base research network on development coordinated by UNDP. The theme was presented in to the UN Climate change conference which cave the way for the climate change negotiation in Bali, Indonesia stressing the importance on the impact climate and ecologic changes on human lives.

This year the Report considers climate change as the defining human development challenge of the 21 st Century. Failure to respond to that challenge will stall and then reverse international efforts to reduce poverty. The poorest countries and most vulnerable citizens will suffer the earliest and most damaging setback even though they have contributed least to the problem. Looking to the future, no country, however wealthy or powerful, will be immune to the impact of global warming.

The Human Development Report shows that climate change is not just a future scenario. Increased exposure to droughts, floods and storms is already destroying opportunities and reinforcing inequality. Meanwhile, there is now overwhelming scientific evidence that the world is moving towards the point at which irreversible ecological catastrophe becomes unavoidable. Business-as-usual climate change points in a clear direction: unprecedented reversal in human development in our lifetime, and acute risks for the future generation.

There is a window of opportunity for avoiding the most damaging climate change impacts, but that window is closing: the world has less than a decade to change course. Actions taken –or not taken- in the years ahead will have a profound effect on the future course of human development. The world is neither short of economic potential nor deprived of technological capabilities to act. What is missing is a sense of urgency, human solidarity and collective interest.

As the 2007/2008 Report argues, climate change poses challenges at many levels. In a divided, but ecologically interdependent world, it challenges all people to reflect upon how we manage the environment of the one treasure that we all share: planet Earth. It challenges us to reflect on social justice and human rights across countries and generations. It challenges political leaders and people in rich nations to acknowledge their historic responsibility for the problem, and to initiate deep and early cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. Above all, it challenges the entire human community to undertake prompt and strong collective action based on shared values and a shared vision.”

All countries included in the HDI are classified into three clusters by achievement in human development: high human development (with an HDI of 0.800 or above), medium human development (0.500-0.799) and low human development (less than 0.500). The HDR 2007/2008 HDI ranks 177 countries for the 2005 figures, the most recent year of available data.  Angola ranks 162º to which achieved a figure of 0,446 showing therefore an improvement comparing to last year 0.439. Despite this slight progress Angola is still placed in low human development group.

Engº Sita José, Minister of Urbanism and Environment who presided over the launch, said that Angola Government is taking pragmatic steps to promote policies and enhance Human capacity to deal with climate changes, emphasizing that such measures helps to improve the socio-economic condition of the population; he also stated that Angola has signed in 2007 the Kyoto protocol.

Gita Welch, UNDP- Angola Director, spoke of the engagement of Angola on the pursuit of sound solution to ease climate changes, also stressed the significant improvements that Angola made in terms of human development linking it directly with the country high economic growth. The UNDP Director pointed out that Angola in one of the most proactive countries in Sub-Sahara Africa in the fight of climate changes, ratifying various UN Convection and international agreement on climate, demonstrating the unquestionable political will and commitment in this quest.

Anatolio Ndong Mba, the UN Resident Coordinator a.i, in his closing speech of the HDR event reiterated the need of international effort and continual cooperation to deal with this phenomenon that affects all of us. And commended the Government for its Endeavor on climate changes and striving to boost its human development position.

The launch of the report had a presence of large numbers of Ministers, Vice-Ministers, Members of Parliament, Development Partners, Academic Community, Students, Media, Heads of Agencies, Minority Political Parties and cross section of Angola Society.