DUBAI – A warning about the risk from climate change has been issued by HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, DEWA and Chairman of the World Green Economy Summit (WGES) during the dialogue’s final day of proceedings.
Speaking to global experts at the forum in the Dubai Exhibition Centre, Expo 2020 Dubai, HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer said: “We recognize that the climate crisis constitutes an urgent global threat whose effects extend beyond the environmental agenda to include economic, social, and environmental challenges. We affirm that sustainable and green recovery must guide our efforts to rebuild the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as to limit temperature increases to less than two degrees Celsius, and to keep the temperature rise at 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, in line with the Paris Agreement (COP21). We encourage inclusive partnerships in which governments, businesses and civil society are part of the collective action of present and future generations. We encourage greater support towards a green, low-carbon economic transition by developing a green hydrogen strategy and roadmap for Dubai.”
HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer added: “We look forward to implementing the commitments related to the goals of the Paris Agreement. We extend our full support to contribute to the success of the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in November 2021 Scotland, United Kingdom.
We will coordinate and align the regional response to climate change with the goal to effectively implement specific contributions, national and other strategies and policies, through the Regional Collaboration Centre of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, of the World Green Economy Organization in Dubai, during the Regional Climate Week for the Middle East and North Africa 2022, and during the next edition of the World Green Economy Summit at Expo 2020 Dubai in March 2022.”
Organised by the Dubai Electricity & Water Authority – Official Sustainable Energy Partner of Expo 2020 Dubai – and World Green Economy Organisation, WGES is held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, in cooperation with Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and WETEX.
The summit brings together world-class experts in critical sectors from around the world to directly focus on advancing the global green economy and sustainability agenda, including achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer also said: “The UAE has always been a pioneer and at the forefront of countries that have adopted innovative solutions to advance the process of transformation towards a green economy; and the Emirate of Dubai, thanks to the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum [Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai] and his tireless efforts, has achieved its position as the capital of the green economy that supports ways to enhance cooperation in facing global challenges, especially those related to issues of climate change and achieving a secure and sustainable future for all.
“In line with the vision of our wise leadership, we have a clear strategy and specific goals to increase the percentage of clean and renewable energy within the energy mix in Dubai, and within this direction of our government, we have launched pioneering initiatives and projects to diversify the sources of clean energy production in Dubai. They include the various available clean and renewable energy sources and technologies, including photovoltaic panels, concentrated solar energy and the production of green hydrogen using solar energy, to be a renewable source of clean energy in the future – in addition to the hydropower technology stored in the hydroelectric plant project in Hatta, using clean energy; in addition to studying the techniques of generating electricity by making use of wind energy.
“Among the most prominent projects is the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest solar energy complex in one location in the world … [which] will have a production capacity of 5,000 megawatts by 2030, at a total cost of AED 50 billion. The complex’s projects constitute a mainstay for achieving the goals of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, which aims to develop 75 per cent of Dubai’s total energy production capacity from clean energy sources by 2050.”