Opening statement of the Chairman of the Executive Committee

M r. Vice-Minister, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, dear friends,

At the outset of this celebration, may I say how pleased I am that I have been invited as Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund to celebrate Ozone day together with you. We celebrate cities that have decided to start into a future free of ozone depleting substances, and China further accelerates her phase out of ozone depleting substances. Today's event really constitutes a red letter day for the ozone community.

The current year also marks a very special occurrence, namely the 20th anniversary of the Vienna Convention. This Convention, together with its Montreal Protocol, is an excellent example of how to solve a global environmental problem by involving both developing and developed countries. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities inherent in the implementation of these outstanding international agreements has demonstrated the clearest possible way that international cooperation between developing and developed countries is, on the one hand, essential and on the other hand, eminently achievable.

The year 2005 also marks an important milestone in the history of the Protocol. In this year, countries operating under Article 5 of the Protocol, more commonly known as developing countries, will have gone half way to achieving the total phase-out of the production and consumption of CFCs and halons. Moreover, the production and consumption of carbon tetrachloride will be reduced even more severely, to just 15 % of each country's baseline. Initial projections on the status of compliance of developing countries show that an overwhelming majority of countries will comply with the control measures.

Despite the successes of the Montreal Protocol to date, it remains vitally important to recall once again that future success cannot be taken for granted. We need to apply constant vigilance and careful management to tackle the significant challenges that are likely to arise in the coming years. For this difficult task we need the leadership of Article 5 countries that have decided to take additional measures in order to improve their environmental performance.

Article 5 countries now have to start preparing for the total phase-out of most ozone depleting substances. Although reports indicate that many Article 5 countries are well on track to comply with the control schedules, difficulties in the years leading up to phase-out might arise. Through the decision to accelerate several phase-out dates, China has sent a very important signal to the international community.

In this process, it is also vital to ensure that the positive results achieved so far remain sustainable. Sustainability is essential, if ongoing compliance with the Protocol is to be guaranteed after the final phase-out.

Looking to the coming years we can already identify some of the new challenges before us. For instance, we have to redouble our efforts to reduce and finally phase-out methyl bromide. At the other end of the spectrum of substances China has made an important step to take action on hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). While the first Protocol control target for HCFCs remains some way off, it is essential that Parties prepare themselves for this new challenge. The HCFC management project signed during the ozone day celebrations of last year can be regarded as pioneer project since it has triggered similar projects in other countries which will eventually lead to the final phase-out of all ozone depleting substances all over the world.

More broadly, while compliance is the principal driving force and the fundamental reason for the existence of the financial mechanism of the Protocol, there is an increasing realisation of the usefulness of a holistic approach to international environmental agreements. We must remain open to the opportunities for correlation of our work with that of other conventions, especially those in related fields.

Rapidly developing countries like China will face many different environmental challenges and the number of obligations will grow, as well. This development clearly demonstrates the need to find synergies between conventions and to implement agreements in a coordinated manner in order to avoid adverse effects. The complete elimination of ozone depleting substances in several cities and the acceleration of the phase-out programme proves China 's strong commitment to solve environmental problems and to set a sustainable environment into reality.

Thank you.