¡¡¡¡ JOHANNESBURG, Aug. 3 (Xinhuanet) -- South Africa has signed the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change, the Citizen newspaper reported Saturday.

¡¡¡¡Ambassador Dumlisani Kumalo, South Africa's permanent representative to the United Nations, Friday presented the instrument of accession to the protocol to the UN treaty section.

¡¡¡¡"It is my government's hope that our accession will attract enough countries to allow this important environment instrument to come into force," he said in a statement.

¡¡¡¡The move followed the ratification of the protocol by the SouthAfrican parliament in March.

¡¡¡¡Kumalo said most world leaders had at the UN Millennium Summit undertaken to "spare no effort to ensure the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol, and to embark on the required reduction in emission of greenhouse gases."

¡¡¡¡The Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change was adopted at the third session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Kyoto, Japan, on Dec. 11, 1997.

¡¡¡¡The Protocol set the quotas for the parties to the convention to decrease the submission of the greenhouse gases, and is subjectto ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by them. Enditem

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