China Sunday launched an official website to act as a government mouth-piece on the heated problem of global climate change.

Officials said the opening of www.ccchina.gov.cn - the first two c's of its name stand for climate change-is an important step in signalling that China is committed to keeping the promises it made when it signed international climate agreements.

"The launch of the official website is an important step for us in the endeavour of curbing global warming following the World Summit on Sustainable Development which recently ended in South Africa's Johannesburg," Director of the Office of National Co-ordination Committee on Climate Change, Gao Guangsheng, said at yesterday's launch ceremony in Beijing.

"The world's climate provisions stipulated that our policies and measures should be transparent, while fulfilling our efforts in cutting the world's global warming gas emissions," said Gao.

Wang Changsheng, deputy director of China Information Centre, said that the website will provide an authoritative platform for providing an information service to the rest of the world.

The website is at present in Chinese, but its English version will be up-and-running soon, said Wang, whose centre is responsible for maintaining the website.

Gao, who is also deputy director of Regional Economic Development under the State Development Planning Commission, reported that the Chinese Government has made considerable inroads into the curbing of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide by controlling population production, improving energy efficiency and enlarging afforestation.

According to Gao, the majority of ministerial departments in China have joined in the fight. The co-ordination committee office operates under the auspices of Gao's commission.

As to investment in this regard, official statistics indicate that between 1998 and 2002, China earmarked a total of 580 billion yuan (US$70 billion) for environmental protection, some 1.29 per cent of its gross domestic production (GDP) during the period.

China recently approved the Kyoto Protocol, which, Gao said,demonstrates the country's willingness to join with other nations in combating environmental degradation.

(China Daily October 14, 2002)