Qatar's initiatives reflect focus on environment preservation

Qatar has devised leading initiatives to battle pollution and climate change and has contributed to multiple UN programmes focusing on environment, HE Director-General of Qatar News Agency (QNA) Ahmed bin Saeed al-Rumaihi, said Monday as the country marked the Qatar Environment Day 2024.
His Excellency hailed this year's theme "Our Earth Our Legacy" as an affirmation of the country's efforts to preserve environment, boost greenery, reduce the climate change effects, and to orchestrate community, officials and civil efforts to preserve Qatar's environment for current and future generations.
The event, which is celebrated annually on Feb 26, has significantly raised community environmental awareness over the past years, successes that reflect the great attention bestowed by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on diverse components of the Qatari environment to thwart degradation and all forms of pollution, he added.
The government has been launching awareness-raising programmes and initiatives to educate various segments of society about environment preservation as a fundamental Qatar National Vision 2030 pillar, he added, highlighting QNA's large-scale media coverage of the national event for effective participation from government, private agencies and institutions across the country.
He added that Qatar has been celebrating this occasion since 1996, under a specific slogan that serves a specific environmental issue, with the aim of drawing attention to the necessity of spreading and enhancing environmental awareness and encouraging the use of environmentally sound technologies.
Commending Qatar's international efforts to battle climate change effects and foster sustainability, he highlighted the 2019 "Plant Million Trees Initiative" with a budget of QR1bn, the commitment to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Climate Agreement and achieving the sustainable development goals, through the Qatar National Environment and Climate Change Strategy, and the National Climate Change Action Plan, all of which promote the implementation of Qatar National Vision 2030.
He spotlighted the relevant agencies' key anti-climate change role in devising innovative projects and initiatives on clean, renewable energy and solar energy plants.
He noted that the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 was an environmentally friendly tournament, with 40% of the materials utilised in the sports facilities having been recycled in a real global achievement.
The Qatar Environment Day activities aim to increase environmental awareness among the public, enhance knowledge, skills and values related to the safety, recovery and preservation of Qatar's environment and its beauty.