[ad_1]
Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, President-designate of the COP, said the world needs an inclusive, action-oriented approach to transform systems and accelerate the trajectory of climate change.
Speaking at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum, Dr. Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, said the UAE is hosting COP28 and helping to build global ambition and accelerate action on climate change. He underscored the urgent need to make progress towards the goals of the Paris Agreement.
“We don’t need to wait for Global Stocktake to know what it will say. We are off track. The world is catching up to Paris’ key goal of keeping global temperatures at 1.5 degrees. Annual global emissions must fall by 43 percent,” Dr Al Jaber said in his first speech since being named COP president-designate, according to a WAM report.
economic benefits
While recognizing the threat of climate change, Dr Al Jaber highlighted the enormous economic benefits of investing in clean energy and climate action, pointing to the UAE as a success story in this regard.
He noted that the UAE, host of the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena), is the first country in the region to commit to the Paris Agreement, the first country in the region to submit a nationally determined contribution, and the first in the region to Develop a net zero roadmap.
“Today, more than 70% of our economy comes from outside the oil and gas industry. As CEO of Adnoc and founding CEO and Chairman of Masdar, I will continue to follow the vision and guidance of our leadership to enable Today’s energy is cleaner while advancing and investing in tomorrow’s clean energy. We will use our experience, our ambition and our deep network of partnerships to inform our approach to COP28,” said Dr Al Jaber.
Dr Al Jaber cited the UAE President’s vision as contributing to the country’s regional and global leadership on climate action and its role as a global advocate for clean energy.
UAE investment
“Over the past 15 years, the UAE has invested US$50 billion globally in renewable energy and clean technologies and plans to invest another US$50 billion in the coming years.”
“We want COP28 to transform the system and accelerate the trajectory to 2030 through game-changing partnerships, solutions and outcomes. We want it to be a united COP that connects the global North and South, including the public and private sectors , scientists and civil society, women and youth. We want it to be a pragmatic COP, a COP of action that sets out ambition and moves from goals to implementation, covering mitigation, adaptation, financing and loss and damage.”
On mitigation, Dr Al Jaber called for the expansion of renewable energy, nuclear energy, hydrogen energy, carbon capture, energy efficiency, minimally carbon-intensive oil and gas, and new technologies not yet deployed.
“Wind and solar have added a record 550 GW between 2020 and 2022 and will have more momentum in the next five years than in the past 20 years combined. The market is telling us something. We are at an inflection point in history. Low Carbon growth is the future. But we have to get there faster.
renewable energy
“We must triple renewable electricity generation from 8 to 23 TWh by 2030. We must more than double low-carbon hydrogen production to at least 180 million tons.We also need to change our food and agricultural systems, because we know that agriculture accounts for a third of global emissions.
“More investment in agricultural technology, smarter water use and food production is needed to transform this critical sector along with all others. We need to get all of this done in an accelerated time frame, ahead of a fast-approaching deadline …By 2050, our world will be home to 9.7 billion people and must produce 30% more energy than it does today. As long as the world is still using hydrocarbons, we must ensure they are as low carbon-intensive as possible,” said Dr Al Jaber said, while he stressed the need to focus on curbing emissions, not progress.
On adaptation, Dr Al Jaber said: “We must do more to protect our most vulnerable communities and our most critical systems from extreme weather and biodiversity loss. He also highlighted the need to invest in nature-based solutions options, such as mangroves as powerful carbon sinks, while protecting coastlines and natural ecosystems. In addition, global food systems need to be able to adapt to changing weather patterns that threaten farmers around the world.”
adaptive financing
Dr Al Jaber called for a doubling of adaptation funding in the global South to US$40 billion per year by 2025 to achieve this progress. He went on to say that climate finance needs to be more affordable and accessible.
“We need to make sure that every dollar of concessions is matched by $2 or 3 of private capital. To do this, we need to heed the international community’s call for inclusive reform of multilateral development banks and international financial institutions. To encourage this process, The UAE, as Chair of the World Bank-IMF Development Committee, intends to play an active, supportive and facilitative role,” said Dr Al Jaber.
On loss and damage, Dr Al Jaber urged the world to help the most vulnerable rebuild after climate-related disasters, build on the progress made in Sharm El Sheikh, and fully activate the Loss and Damage Fund.
Dr. Al Jaber concluded by saying that the UAE, as host of COP28, at the crossroads of North-South, East-West, will listen to, engage with, build bridges and seek global consensus among all those who want to participate in this collective endeavour. .
ambition to act
“Together with Razan Al Mubarak, Senior UN Climate Change Advocate, and Shamma Al Mazrui, Youth Climate Advocate, we will be working closely with the UNFCCC [United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change] From ambition to action. We will mobilize the private sector and all others for greater impact. Let me therefore extend an open invitation to all parties in government, the private sector and civil society. Collaborate, collaborate, share your thoughts and chat with us. Together, let us create a paradigm shift for real progress. Let us remember that achieving net zero emissions will bring about the greatest market transformation and the greatest economic and human hope since the first industrial revolution,” said Dr Al Jaber.
The Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum brings together the world’s top energy and foreign policy decision makers each year to examine the long-term geopolitical and geoeconomic implications of changing energy systems. The forum is part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW), organized in partnership with the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, Adnoc and Mubadala. — trade arab news agency
[ad_2]
Source link