Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and President-designate of the COP28 Conference of the Parties, confirmed that in line with the vision of the leadership in the UAE, the COP28 Presidency is keen to take advantage of the climate action opportunity to promote sustainable economic and social growth, by focusing Simultaneously reducing emissions from the current energy system and building a clean future energy system.
This came in Al Jaber’s speech during the opening of Climate Week in the Middle East and North Africa region today in Riyadh in the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where he called on the countries of the region to benefit from their legacy in climate action and build on it to enhance their leadership role and achieve inclusive progress in climate action in preparation for COP28.
Al-Jaber held bilateral meetings with a group of prominent senior officials participating in Climate Week in the Middle East and North Africa region, including Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, Minister of Energy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Saad Nasser Al-Barrak, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil of Kuwait, Jassim Al-Budaiwi, Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, Burgi Brende, President of the World Economic Forum, Jim Skia, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and Ahmed Aslam, Minister of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination of Pakistan; The discussion dealt with ways to enhance joint Gulf action in the areas of climate change and emissions reduction.
Al-Jaber praised the pioneering efforts of the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, noting the success of the “Green Saudi Initiative” and the “Green Middle East Initiative” in stimulating investment in mitigation and adaptation measures at the level of the Kingdom and the region. He also thanked the Kingdom for hosting Climate Week activities in the Middle East and North Africa region in preparation. For COP28 He highlighted the region's efforts in the field of renewable energy, noting that regional investments in wind and solar energy have increased more than four times in the past decade, with the current value expected to double over the next five years, pointing out that the region is at the forefront of clean hydrogen production globally.
Al Jaber said: The region has the resources and expertise necessary to build a better future for the Middle East, North Africa, and the entire world. Over the decades, it has succeeded in utilizing its capabilities to achieve radical changes, and has faced global events and climate change with flexibility and stability. He stressed that the leadership in the UAE is keen to enhance the country’s track record and its successful steps in the field of climate action with a firm political will, and that the COP28 team has the determination and resolve to contribute to building a better future for all, stressing the keenness of the conference presidency to mobilize the world’s efforts to support its ambitious and comprehensive plan for action. Climate change, especially with only 53 days remaining until the start of COP28.
He pointed out that the countries producing traditional fuels hosted 17 of the 27 conferences of the parties that the world has witnessed so far, which demonstrates the importance of the role of the energy sector, and confirms that achieving an orderly, responsible, fair and logical transition in the energy sector is necessary for economic and climate progress.
Al Jaber also reiterated the need to triple the production capacity of renewable energy sources globally and double energy efficiency by 2030. He welcomed the support of 85 percent of the world's economies for this goal. He said that more than 20 oil and gas companies responded to the call to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 or before, eliminate methane emissions, and stop gas burning operations by 2030, stressing the continued call for all companies to respond by COP28.
He pointed out that the region possesses the necessary resources and expertise to build a future that supports climate action and economic growth simultaneously and to create new sectors, technologies, jobs and new hope, calling for the use of its capabilities, capital, expertise and scope of work to achieve tangible positive results.
Following the opening ceremony; Dr. Sultan Al Jaber participated in two high-level sessions, where he met in the “Regional Dialogue on the Global Outcome” session with a number of policy makers and stakeholders to discuss regional views on the progress of the assessment process. He also gave a speech in the “Ministerial Meeting of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf,” highlighting It highlights the role of COP28 in confirming the region’s leadership in climate action, and the importance of supporting the implementation of effective and tangible climate measures.
It is worth noting that “Climate Week in the Middle East and North Africa”, which is being held in Riyadh this week and hosted by the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is one of four regional events held during the current year to build the necessary momentum to support COP28 and prepare an effective response to the results of the first global stocktaking to assess progress in Achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Source: International Islamic News Agency