The Philippine government expressed hope on November 21 that the signatory countries of the Kyoto Protocol would be able to resolve several issues on climate change during the conference in Doha starting next week.

Climate Change Commission (CCC) vice-chairman Mary Ann Lucille Sering, in a news briefing, said that the future of the Kyoto Protocol will be tackled during the "18th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)" and the "8th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol."

The events will take place from Nov. 26 to Dec. 7, 2012 at the Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha, Qatar.

"This is a very important conference for us, especially developing countries like the Philippines, because we will talk about the Kyoto Protocol. There is a talk of extending the second commitment period," she said.

The Philippines wants the second commitment period to span from 2013 to 2017, she added.

The Kyoto Protocol is the only international treaty limiting greenhouse-gas emissions that expires in 2012.