On 3 June, UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner and EU Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs signed a new contribution agreement on climate change in Latin America under the EUROCLIMA programme.

The European Commission and UNEP are joining forces under EUROCLIMA in order to support the integration of climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and measures into Latin American public development policies and plans at the national, sub-regional and regional levels. Activities under the agreement will be aligned with priorities of governments as identified by the Forum of Latin American and Caribbean Ministers of Environment" to which UNEP is providing the Secretariat through its Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean.

"I trust EUROCLIMA will be a pioneering step forward towards strengthening regional cooperation, which will benefit from UNEP's strengthened mandate to support environmental cooperation at the regional level worldwide," said Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director, Achim Steiner at the signing.

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