Egypt launches 1st national dialogue on climate change

CAIRO – 27 March 2022: In preparation for hosting the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), Egyptian Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad launched on Saturday the first national dialogue on climate change from Sharm El Sheikh (the city of peace) where the conference would convene in November.

 

The national dialogue on climate change is a message to the world that the 27th climate conference is primarily an executive conference in which Egypt sends its message of “Peace of Nature from the land of the peace,” said Fouad.

 

Egypt has raised awareness of the addressing climate change impacts among the citizens through daily life activities by rationalizing his consumption of water, energy and resources, the Minister added.

 

The Minister of Environment reviewed Egypt's efforts and projects aimed at addressing climate change such as seawater desalination and wastewater reuse, in addition to projects of protecting the Nile Delta, using renewable energy. She added that Egypt is working on countering the effects of climate change, despite the fact that Egypt's emissions of greenhouse gases do not exceed 1% globally.

 

The Minister of Environment also announced the first environmental journalism and media award on climate change in Egypt in cooperation with the Association of Environmental and Development Writers. the award has been named after late prominent environment journalist Suzan Zaki for her efforts in spreading awareness of climate and environmental issues over 20 years.

 

The development of Sharm El-Sheikh city over the past years was a catalyst in choosing the city to host many international conferences such as the Biodiversity Conference and the World Youth Forum, and the COP27 Climate Change Conference, said South Sinai Governor Khaled Fouda during the conference on Saturday.

 

The infrastructure of Sharm el-Sheikh has been designed to make it a green city, with adopting policies to reduce emissions. The city has received 300 electric buses in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment, had a garage in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport on an area of 100,000 square meters containing chargers for electric cars. The city is working on converting a total of 800 taxis to work with natural gas. 

 

In addition to this, a total of 150 microbuses were replaced to operate with new gas or electricity. The governorate cooperated with the Ministries of Tourism and Environment to transform the city’s hotels into green ones with a set of controls, including the use of solar energy, besides increasing green spaces.

 

Egypt’s National Climate Change Strategy 2050, which has been completed and is linked to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, aims at achieving a sustainable economy, adopting climate governance, creating enhanced climate finance and infrastructure, enhancing scientific research and technology and raising awareness to confront climate change, said Advisor to the Minister of Environment for the Climate Change Issues Amr Osama.