Pacific Leaders Ready for COP21

Ten Pacific leaders are on the official batting order to address the world when the final rounds of discussions for a new agreement on climate change opens in Paris. President of Kiribati, Anote Tong leads the batting order when the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference. He is speaker number 13 in a line-up of speakers that has American President Barack Obama as speaker number 3 and Russian leader Vladimir Putin as the 9th speaker. For the reason that a large number of leaders attending the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s COP21 conference this week, about 150 so far, their speeches will be delivered in two parallel sessions at the COP21 venue, the sprawling Le Bourget in an outer suburb of Paris.

President Tong is speaking in the morning session in Room Seine on the first day. At the same room but after lunch, four other Pacific leaders have registered to deliver their address, President Christopher Loeak of the Marshall Islands is speaker number 24, President Peter Christian is number 26, Prime Minister Enele Sosene Sopoaga number 48 and Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji as speaker number 50.

In Room Loire, Baron Waqa, President of Nauru is speaker number 15 out of the 16 leaders that are lined up to speak during the morning session. Four leaders will speak here after lunch, namely President Tommy E Remengesau of Palau as speaker number 18, Henry Puna, Prime Minister of the Cook Islands as number 47, Tuilaepa Lupesoliai Sailele Malielelegaoi as number 48 and Peter Paire O’Neill of Papua New Guinea as number 64.