Dubai (Union)
Her Excellency Maryam bint Muhammad Al Muhairi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, confirmed that the official visit to the sisterly Sultanate of Oman came with the aim of highlighting several common aspects in environmental work, especially in the field of mangrove cultivation and achieving climate neutrality, in addition to discussing the field of cooperation with the UAE’s willingness to host COP28 later this year.
Al Muhairi added that with the country’s hosting of the COP28 Conference, we encourage the adoption of nature-based solutions in facing environmental challenges, as part of the UAE’s directions for climate action at the local and global levels, and achieving the UAE’s goal of striving towards climate neutrality by 2050.
This came as a delegation headed by Her Excellency concluded a visit to the sisterly Sultanate of Oman to discuss opportunities for cooperation between the two countries in several fields, including fish farming and the country’s strategic initiative to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, planting mangroves and preparing for the UAE’s hosting of the twenty-eighth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention. Framework on Climate Change (COP28).
During the visit, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the UAE, represented by the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, and the Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Environment Agency, which represents one of the main pillars for achieving sustainable development and promoting and developing joint cooperation in various fields of the environment.
The memorandum provided for the exchange of studies and research, the implementation of joint research in the environmental field, the promotion of air quality and the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, in addition to the preparation of national reports for sustainable development.
The two sides will exchange best practices in monitoring information and data, improving environmental indicators in the environmental performance index report, and global competitiveness reports, in addition to exchanging legislation, laws, regulations, and strategies in various fields of environmental protection and pollution control. The two sides will exchange best practices in the field of climate action and exchange studies and research on the effects of climate change on development sectors and climate neutrality techniques.
The memorandum includes the exchange of national plans for adaptation and mitigation of climate change in the development sectors, the development of expertise, capacity building in this field, the exchange of experiences and best practices, in addition to conducting studies and research in the field of protecting the marine environment and aquaculture in mangroves, in cooperation between research agencies. and academy in both countries. The two sides will work on rehabilitating critical habitats and exchanging experiences and research in the field of biological security between the two parties related to the issue of import and export.
The state delegation included Eng. Issa Al-Hashemi, Assistant Undersecretary for the Sustainable Communities Sector and Acting Assistant Undersecretary for the Green Development and Climate Change Sector, Dr. Mohammed Al-Hammadi, Assistant Undersecretary for the Biodiversity and Aquatic Life Sector, Eng. Mona Al-Amoudi, Director of the Climate Change Department, Heba Al-Shehhi, Director of the Biodiversity Department, and Abdullah Al-Rumaithi is Director of the Environment Policy and Planning Department in the Office of the Special Envoy for Climate. The visit included a meeting with Dr. Abdullah bin Ali Al-Omari, Chairman of the Environment Authority in the Sultanate, in addition to a meeting with His Excellency Dr. Saud bin Hamoud Al-Habsi, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources of the Sultanate of Oman.
During the visit, the delegation visited the Ras Al Shajar Reserve and the Mangroves Reserve, in addition to a visit to the cofferfish cage farm, with the aim of learning about best practices and exchanging knowledge in the areas of preserving biodiversity and sustaining fish wealth.
experiences
The two sides shall endeavor to conserve and rehabilitate endangered species, including breeding programmes, combating illegal wildlife trade and poaching, managing and combating invasive species and managing data on biodiversity. The two sides will exchange experiences in the field of combating desertification and reducing land degradation, in particular stabilizing sand dunes and sand encroachment, and in the field of rehabilitating and preserving local plants, in addition to exchanging experiences in the field of managing natural environmental systems.
#Maryam #Muhairi #NatureBased #Solutions #Environmental #Challenges