I should like, first of all, to thank Her Majesty the Queen, the Government and the people of Denmark for their good organization of the Copenhagen Summit Conference. I also want to thank the Secretary-General of the United Nations Organization for his personal commitment to the Conference's objectives. The world population is indeed expecting the Copenhagen Conference to take decisions that can help us rise to the challenge of global warming.

Climate change problems have reached a critical level. It is therefore necessary for the international community to take immediate action and to come up with a new environmental agreement. This accord should be based not only on concrete, voluntary decisions to cut greenhouse gas emissions, but also on shared responsibility, taking various circumstances into account.

The agreement cannot be fair unless developed countries are willing to assume their environmental responsibilities, by pledging to take bold, applicable, concrete measures that are based on specific figures and a precise timetable with a view to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Nor can the agreement be equitable unless it enables developing countries - especially those whose very existence is threatened, and the African continent, which has been suffering the most from the impact of climate change on its development - to benefit from steady, reliable, adequate funding mechanisms that can help mitigate the severe consequences of global warming. More importantly, developing countries should be able to fund their readjustment programs and gain access to modern technology in order to participate in global efforts to combat the upheaval caused by climate change and promote a green economy, by encouraging sustainable production and consumption patterns and developing clean energies and industries.

As complex crises continue to grip the global economic and financial system, I believe that combating the adverse effects of climate change requires us to consolidate the global institutional environmental framework, and place this question at the heart of a thorough reassessment of international governance. The aim is to make sure our action is more consistent, dependable and rational in sectors relating to global environmental and development issues. To this end, I believe it is urgent to set up an international environmental institution that should have the scientific competence required and the moral authority needed to face current and future environmental challenges.

Your Majesties,
Your Excellencies,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Like other countries around the world, and because not only of its geographical location but also of the specificity of its ecosystems, Morocco has suffered from the impact of climate change.

My country was therefore among the first nations to become acutely aware of the issues underscored by the Rio Summit, and has thus ratified the relevant international agreements and adopted national action programs.
 
Environmental issues therefore feature prominently in our development programs, whether they concern water resources - an area in which my country has been applying a pioneering policy to ensure optimal use of water resources and fight floods and drought - or the implementation of the National Initiative for Human Development and the adoption of strategic, sectoral development plans, particularly in the areas of farming, environmental protection - for which I have requested that a national  charter be prepared - energy efficiency and renewable energy development.

In this regard, I have recently launched a massive, integrated program for the generation of electricity from solar energy through the construction of solar plants with a total production capacity of 2000 MW. Thanks to this colossal project - one of the biggest in the world - 42 percent of Morocco’s electricity will come from renewable energy sources by the year 2020. Moreover, the environment will be spared 3.7 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

By opting for this sustainable development policy, Morocco is confirming its strong involvement in international efforts to combat global warming. This phenomenon does not merely have a critical impact on sustainable development, on the needs of current generations and the rights of those to come; nor does it simply affect prospects for achieving more humane, more balanced, more equitable, solidarity-based global governance. The gravity of the situation is, in fact, such that a stronger, collective commitment has become indispensable to save humankind and our planet from destruction and annihilation. I cannot think of a more appropriate forum for taking the right, innovative steps, making concrete decisions and undertaking the initiatives required before it is too late.

Wassalamu alaikum warahmatullah wabarakatuh.