Minister says Qatar National Vision 2030 provides roadmap to face climate change

HE the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Sheikh Dr Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali al-Thani said the Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 27) in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh is being held at an important phase of dealing with climate change.
In his speech during the resumed high-level segment, he voiced hopes that the conference would boost collective action, and build on the outcomes of previous conferences, including the COP18, held in Qatar in 2012, in a clear indication of the strong determination to meet this global challenge.
He affirmed that Qatar set climate change as one of its priorities, in response to the Qatar National Vision 2030, which drew a roadmap that defined future directions and reflected the ambition towards achieving balanced and sustainable growth within an interactive environment.
He added the vision aims to enhance the cultural aspect of community members as they are the focus of development.
In this context, and in belief of the importance of scientific research in facing the challenges of climate change and sustainability, Qatar invested its energies in establishing many research centres, which have yielded many achievements as well as research projects aimed at enhancing knowledge, providing advice and building capacities in areas related to climate change and environmental sustainability, he said.
He also highlighted Qatar's efforts to ensure that students at this important stage of their lives experience coexistence in an educational environment based on the principles of sustainability, in a way that bolsters the concepts of environmental sustainability in students in the long-term.
He added that the ministry sought to achieve the objectives of the National Strategy for Environment and Climate Change, as a plan was drawn up aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% from all sectors by 2030.
In this national plan, Qatar identified hundreds of initiatives, whether to reduce emissions or to adapt to the climate change effects, he said.
In addition, the milestones of Qatar's progress in the field of renewable energy have become clear, as we recently opened a solar power plant, which will meet 10% of the Qatar's need for electrical energy, in addition to our intention to expand the field of waste-to-energy conversion as part of the national programme for resource sustainability and waste recycling, he said.
HE the Minister of Environment and Climate Change stressed that Qatar's provision of its nationally determined contributions reflects the level of ambition it seeks to achieve in the field of climate change, and added Qatar will continue to work to translate these ambitions into reality that will contribute to supporting the objectives of the Paris Agreement on climate change.
In his speech, HE Sheikh Dr Faleh bin Nasser bin Ahmed bin Ali al-Thani welcomed all to attend the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which will be hosted by Qatar in a few days, and to enjoy the first carbon-neutral World Cup, wishing the conference to achieve its desired goals and to be a starting point to confront climate change and its challenges with greater determination. (QNA)