Sustainable development issues still unresolved

As the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, reached its final day of deliberations and pronouncements, many issues remained unresolved.

As everyone knows the effects of global warming affects the entire planet most especially small island states such as our country and all ecosystems.

Antonio M. Claparols, president of the Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) and International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) regional councilor and member of the Philippine Delegation, stated that "in our country the weather patterns have changed and are unpredictable, floods, droughts coral bleaching, rise of the sea temperature will affect our environment and destroy our biodiversity making it more difficult for our people to have food and environmental security and poverty alleviation.

Agriculture remains a big stumbling block for developing countries such as the Philippines as developed countries refuse subsidies. As we can produce food cheaper than developed countries, but we have no access to their markets due to lack of subsidies make our produce more expensive. At the summit, poor countries have dropped their insistence on a deadline for elimination of market distorting subsidies from rich countries.

Water and sanitation has not been addressed fully, but one of the key points taken up by nearly 200 countries agreed to halve proportion of people without proper sanitation by 2015, a goal Washington had resisted.

The US delegation to the Earth Summit stalled the adoption of a waterdown compromise text on the controversial globalization and trade issues because it wants US President George W. Bush to approve it first. Officials of the conference said that it was the first time that the US delegation had decided to refer to the White House an issue.

As the World Summit comes to its end, what is said and what will be done, only time will tell. We urge our government and all our people to be vigilant and not rely on mere pronouncements. We urge our government to take the lead in self sufficiency from local and national levels. We must not be beholden and rely on others to solve our problems. We must be together to take the lead and action on the ground to solve poverty alleviation, attain food and environmental security, health and peace in our country and in the region," Claparols added.