President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has encouraged the European Union (EU) to continue helping the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in its fight against the impacts of climate change.
In his remarks at the ASEAN-EU Commemorative Summit on Dec. 14, Marcos particularly asked the organization to continue supporting the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity, which at this point, "needs all the support it can get."
"The ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), which is based in the Philippines and manages the preservation of all 51 ASEAN heritage parks dotted all over the region which represent ASEAN's diverse ecosystems, needs as much support as it can get," Marcos told his fellow leaders.
"I encourage the EU and its member states to continue extending cooperation activities and support for the ACB," he stated.
The President stated that the region is "currently losing huge chunks of our natural resources at a rate difficult to repair and impossible to replenish in our lifetime." Thus, the role of the ACB, he said, is vital to the region's efforts against climate change.
"The ACB's work is vital in preserving and growing ASEAN's rich natural heritage which serve as a main pillar of our culture and our economy," he said.
'We need to act together'
Marcos also echoed to the EU his agenda on climate change which could be effectively addressed if nations get together and work hand in hand.
"The world must get together to fight the effects of climate change and to ensure sustainable development. Climate change threatens to radically transform for the worst many vulnerable ASEAN landscapes," he said.
"It is a race against time to conserve and prevent habitat and biodiversity loss," he added.
Combating climate change is one of the three priorities the President mentioned in his speech that the EU and ASEAN could work on.
"There is no problem like climate change that is so global in nature that it requires immediate and united effort. We need to act now. We need to act together. We need to get it right," Marcos stressed.