Vice Minister Of Environment Advocates For Global Cooperation In Environmental Sustainability At UNEA-7

Vice Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Eng. Mansour Hilal Almushaiti highlighted the necessity for unified efforts at national, regional, and international levels to tackle global environmental challenges. He stressed the importance of collaborative actions to create sustainable solutions that safeguard the planet and bolster its resilience, ensuring a sustainable future for upcoming generations. His comments were made during a high-level meeting at the seventh session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7) in Nairobi, Kenya on December 11 and 12.

The event, themed "Advancing Sustainable Solutions for a Resilient Planet," saw extensive international participation. Almushaiti elaborated on Saudi Arabia's integrated approach to enhancing environmental sustainability through comprehensive national policies. These strategies focus on managing natural resources, expanding vegetation cover, combating desertification, preserving biodiversity, reducing carbon emissions, and adopting a circular economy to improve resource efficiency and waste recycling.

Almushaiti emphasized Saudi Arabia's commitment to supporting joint efforts in exchanging expertise and activating cooperation mechanisms in environmental fields. This aims to strengthen collective action towards practical solutions using technology and innovation to support Sustainable Development Goals, aligning with Saudi Vision 2030 objectives. The Kingdom has played a significant role in addressing global environmental issues by collaborating with regional and international partners.

Saudi Arabia has hosted notable international events like World Environment Day, the One Water Summit, and COP16. These events launched initiatives aimed at reducing land degradation and drought impacts. Almushaiti noted that during UNEA-6, Saudi Arabia submitted a draft resolution on enhancing international cooperation to combat land degradation. This resolution received support from the assembly, highlighting Saudi Arabia's leadership in tackling global environmental issues.

The Kingdom has rehabilitated over 500,000 hectares of degraded land and planted more than 151 million trees as part of the Saudi Green Initiative targets. Almushaiti mentioned ongoing efforts under the Middle East Green Initiative involving 30 Arab, Asian, and African countries. Both initiatives serve as frameworks for regional and international cooperation to unify efforts in protecting the environment and ensuring natural resource sustainability.

In his closing remarks, Almushaiti reaffirmed Saudi Arabia’s dedication to working with all partners to enhance joint environmental action. He called for support of international initiatives that contribute to protecting the planet. Key among these are the Global Water Organization and the Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership. These initiatives provide effective frameworks for strengthening joint international efforts against drought.

With inputs from SPA