His Excellency Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al-Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, stressed the importance of applying a comprehensive and practical approach that leads to accelerating the paths of confronting the repercussions of climate change and achieving a radical shift in climate action mechanisms, in his first speech after being assigned the task of the appointed president of the twenty-eighth session of the Conference of the Parties. In the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change COP 28.
In a speech before the Global Energy Forum of the Atlantic Council, His Excellency said that the UAE deals with responsibility and full awareness of the importance of hosting the COP28 Conference of the Parties and that it will focus on contributing to achieving global ambitions and accelerating climate action, stressing the urgent need to make progress in implementing the goals of the Paris Agreement.
With regard to the first global outcome of the assessment of progress made in implementing the Paris Agreement, which COP28 will witness its completion, he added: “We do not need to wait for this assessment to know its results, as we are very far from the right track, and the world is still lagging behind in implementing the main objective of the Paris Agreement, which is Avoiding the rise in the planet’s temperature exceeding the threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius,” explaining that achieving this goal requires reducing global emissions by 43 percent by 2030.
His Excellency stressed that despite the clear challenges and threats posed by climate change, there are significant economic benefits to investing in clean energy and climate action, referring to the success story of the UAE in considering climate action as a cornerstone of its development plans.
He added that the UAE, which hosts the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), is the first country in the region to sign and ratify the Paris Agreement, submit its nationally determined contributions, and set a road map to achieve climate neutrality.
Pointing out that more than 70 percent of the UAE's economy is currently dependent on sectors other than oil and gas, His Excellency said: "In my capacity as the founding CEO of Masdar Company, Chairman of its Board of Directors, and CEO of ADNOC, I will continue to work to achieve the leadership's vision and directives to reduce emissions from sources." current energy, while continuing to invest in the development of the clean energy system of the future, and we will use our experience, ambition and close partnerships to inform our approach to COP28.”
His Excellency pointed out that the long-term vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, “may God protect him,” in the field of sustainable economic and social development is a fundamental pillar of the UAE’s regional and global leadership in climate action and its role as a global supporter of clean energy, as the UAE has invested $50 billion in clean technologies globally over the past 15 years, and plans to invest an additional $50 billion in the coming years.
His Excellency explained that the UAE will focus during the COP28 conference on achieving a qualitative development in the existing work system, and accelerating work paths to achieve the 2030 goals, through partnerships, solutions and outputs that contribute to bringing about a positive quantum leap. Dialogue between the countries of the North and the South, including the government and private sectors, the scientific community, civil society, women, and youth.We also aim to be a practical conference that contributes to taking actual steps, raises ambitions, and moves us from setting goals to implementing them on issues of mitigation, adaptation, financing, losses and damages.
In the field of "mitigating" the repercussions of climate change, His Excellency Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber called for expanding the adoption of renewable, nuclear and hydrogen energy sources, carbon capture solutions and energy efficiency enhancement, as well as oil and gas production with the lowest possible carbon emissions, and benefiting from new technologies.
His Excellency stated that wind energy and solar energy recorded a record growth of 550 gigawatts between 2020 and 2022, and that they are on their way to grow during the next five years at rates that exceed their total growth rate over the past twenty years. He said, "Given the developments in the markets, we are currently passing through a watershed stage in the history of the energy sector. The future will be for low-emissions growth, so we must reach it faster."
He pointed to the world's need to triple the production of renewable energy, from 8 to 23 terawatt-hours by 2030, and to more than double the production of low-carbon hydrogen, to reach at least 180 million tons, for use in sectors whose emissions are difficult to mitigate. . He also stressed the need to develop food and agricultural systems, given that the agricultural sector is responsible for a third of global emissions.
His Excellency stressed the need to continue focusing on reducing emissions, not reducing growth and progress rates, pointing to the need for more investment in agricultural technology, and the adoption of smart solutions in the use of water and food production to achieve the transition in the vital agricultural and food systems sector, in parallel with other sectors, and the need Do this in an accelerated timeframe that can meet the impending deadline.
With the world population expected to reach 9.7 billion people by 2050, he pointed out the need to increase energy production by 30 percent compared to current levels, and the need to provide hydrocarbon energy sources with the lowest possible number of emissions as long as the world is still dependent on them.
Regarding "adaptation", he indicated the need to do more to protect communities most vulnerable to the repercussions of climate change, and ecosystems, in the face of harsh climate fluctuations and the deterioration of biodiversity, and to ensure the ability of the global food system to withstand the volatile weather patterns that threaten farmers in around the world.
He also stressed the importance of investing in nature-based solutions, such as mangroves, as effective solutions in climate change
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