Environment Minister Underlines Climate Change is National Priority for Qatar

Sheikh Dr. Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali Al-Thani

HE Minister of Environment and Climate Change Sheikh Dr. Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali Al-Thani stressed Sunday that the issue of climate change is a national priority for the State of Qatar, highlighting the 2021 ambitious measures in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030 to preserve the environment and green growth and alleviate the climate change impacts.

These measures included adopting a national strategy for the environment and climate change and preparing a clear national action plan for climate change in Qatar over the coming ten years to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in all sectors by 25 percent by 2030, His Excellency said in a speech delivered on the inauguration of a conference held by Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in partnership with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) under the theme "Climate Leadership in the State of Qatar and the Road to the 27th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 27)".
His Excellency explained that the National Action Plan for Climate Change identified more than 35 initiatives to cut off these emissions as part of the effective measures put in place to achieve the environmental goals. The measures include clear and specific implementation plans as well as approaches to reach the highest levels of investment in low-carbon technologies such as the use of solar energy and carbon sequestration.

The conference comes as part of the State of Qatar's preparations to participate in the 7-18 November COP 27 to be hosted by Egypt, His Excellency told reporters.

His Excellency hailed the opening of a GGGI office in Qatar as a testament to the country's interest in the issues of green growth, sustainability and climate change as part of the urgent issues in the present as well as the importance of commitment to exerting further efforts toward sustainable development and preserving the environment.

The State of Qatar called for the inauguration of a GGGI bureau in Doha in 2019 to determine the scope of cooperation activities that boost climate resilience and green growth in Qatar, His Excellency said, highlighting a three-year long cooperation program (2022-24) between the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and the GGGI to support the climate resilience and the green growth policies. The program includes five projects with a focus on ecology and climate change in a number of sectors including reserves and the quality of water and air.

As part of its efforts to mitigate the climate change impacts, His Excellency added, the State of Qatar enhanced its abidance by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through announcing the National Strategy for Environment, the Qatar National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) and the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), plans that go in accordance with the implementation of Qatar National Vision 2030.

He added that the GGGI bureau serves all government agencies concerned about climate change, noting that the State of Qatar was one of the founders of the GGGI in 2012 and a member of its board from 2020 to 2022. His Excellency expressed hopes that cooperation with NGOs concerned about climate change and the environment and all segments of society would continue to reach further coordination in development plans and policies and put required preparations for preserving, developing and guaranteeing the best use of natural resources needed for the achievement of the developmental strategy for climate change.

His Excellency stressed the State of Qatar's various projects related to climate change in sectors like clean and renewable energy and solar power plants, highlighting that the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 will be eco-friendly with 40 percent of materials used in the tournament's facilities having been recycled.

Commenting on the State of Qatar's National Strategy for Environment and Climate Change, His Excellency said it included around 90 initiatives with 35 of them to be implemented soon. 

During his remark delivered to the conference, Director-General GGGI Dr. Frank Rijsberman hailed the existing partnership between the institute and the State of Qatar, represented by the ministry of environment and climate change, including the inauguration of the institute's office in Doha and Qatar's dedicated efforts to the office, commending the multiple great efforts and initiatives carried by out the State of Qatar to reduce climate change, including its flexibility to convert the challenges into new opportunities and solidify its corporate infrastructure for the future and region through incorporating the sustainability vision into its mega projects, including FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 projects. 

He added that the national and practical strategies and plans carried out by the State of Qatar, including ambitious and innovative projects in overcoming climate change, reducing gas and methane emissions, countering their harmful impacts and the transition to alternative and renewable energy are highly commendable and something to be proud of in a time the world is moving toward green growth, underscoring the institute's readiness to support and promote the Qatari policies and efforts and further explore their development opportunities, including smart farming to ensure the regional and international security, especially that the institute has become a reliable partner for governments. 

He pointed out that the institute operates to build global capabilities for carbon trading and make this a platform for carbon transactions to achieve mutual benefit, expressing his aspiration for a new session of the UN Climate Change Conference 2022 in the Arab Republic of Egypt (COP27) to build and design an ambitious work to ensure a prosperous future for the next generations.

Dr. Frank Rijsberman gave a presentation about the cooperation program between the institute and MOECC, reviewing the fields in which the two parties seek to focus on, the national action strategies and Qatari initiatives in this respect, including their keenness to develop the green economy strategies, economic diversity, eco-systems, sustainability, building national capacities, adaptation plans and others to reduce the impact caused by carbon emissions and working with stakeholders, noting the significance of constructive cooperating with the entire partners in the State of Qatar with the objective of curbing climate change. 

HE Special Envoy of the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Climate Change and Sustainability Ambassador Bader Omar Al Dafa stressed in the conference's round table the State of Qatar is one of the countries that are fully committed to implementing all international treaties and agreements and projects that call for reducing the Earth's temperature and carbon emissions, among other obligations. He stressed that Qataris have had a close connection with the land since ancient times and with preserving the environment of their homeland, wishing that future generations follow the same path.

HE warned that no country could do anything alone regarding climate change. From this standpoint, all countries must cooperate to take unified positions and measures that would mitigate the harmful effects of climate change and look to the future of the next generations.

HE Ambassador Al Dafa explained that Qatar participated in all the symposiums and meetings on climate change during the last period to enhance cooperation and coordination on climate change conferences, including the upcoming COP27 in Egypt. 

Qatar is active in the field of climate change and its challenges at the level of the United Nations and has great and many commitments and new initiatives in this field, as well as its commitment through global institutions, to support the least developed countries to address its damage. This role is not surprising for Qatar to play, HE stressed.

In the round table, the Director-General and CEO of the Global Green Growth Institute spoke about the institute, its projects and country support, the financing process, adaptation to climate change and dealing with its effects, and a number of topics that will be raised during COP 27.

Director of the Meteorological Department at the General Authority of Civil Aviation Abdulla Mohammed Al Mannai spoke about the areas of interest to the authority and its efforts to adapt to climate change and mitigate it, addressing in a related context the Qatar National Strategy for the Environment and Climate Change and its important objectives, fields, and priorities.

He indicated that to assess the state of the climate objectively, all elements surrounding the environment, its nature and prevailing characteristics should be studied, pointing to the importance of developing an objective mechanism for adaptation processes and the possibility of mitigating the negative effects of climate change through effective cooperation and participation between the various competent national institutions. He noted that the Meteorological Department has a large and detailed network of meteorological and marine monitoring of meteorological and climatic elements covering all regions of the country. The department also has numerical models for weather, marine, and climatic forecasts that have been developed to suit the nature of the weather and climatic conditions of the State of Qatar and its surroundings, as well as the development of a climate atlas for the country, while other departments of the authority also have a team specialized in studying and evaluating the impact of the civil aviation sector on climate and its changes.

Al Mannai stated that the issue of climate change is one of the global environmental issues that decision-makers are concerned with, given its impact on various sectors of life, not only at the national level but also for its important role in the international economy and the future of humanity. He stressed the importance of focusing on this issue on transparency, accuracy in reading results from scientific studies related to climate change so that they are objective and useful to decision-makers, calling for objective and logical results in analyzing correct scientific results because the economic and social costs are high for countries and societies, which in turn requires close cooperation at the level of concerned national and regional institutions.

(QNA)