The Ministry of Environment and Water, will organize, during March 2014, the “First Global Conference of the Partnership for Action on Green Economy" under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the UAE Vice President - Prime Minister - and Ruler of Dubai. This step is considered as a boost for the Ministry’s commitment in adopting green economy approach on a national and international level to reach the objectives of sustainable development.
The conference will be held in Conrad Hotel in Dubai on March 4th-5th, 2014, in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Program, the International Labor Organization, and the United Nations Organization for Industrial Development and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research .
The organization of the conference was announced by His Excellency Dr. Rashid Ahmed Bin Fahad, the Minister of Environment and Water, during a press conference held last December in the presence of Achim Steiner, the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Program- Director of the United Nations Environment Program. The Minister mentioned the State's interest in hosting the conference to support national efforts and accelerate the shift towards a green economy in accordance with the Emirates Strategy for Green Development, and reaffirmed the State’s commitment to such approach to support its active participation in the international arena by developing innovative solutions to protect the environment and ensuring its sustainability, as emphasized by the "UAE Vision 2020".
In this context, a Higher Committee for the organization and preparation for this conference was formed under the chairmanship of H.E. Abdul Rahim Mohamed Al Hammadi, the Assistant Undersecretary for Support Services, to gather all efforts and possibilities for the success of the first World Conference that the United Arab Emirates will be hosting.
Around 500 eminent figures representing the State Members at the United Nations, the private sector and the society will be participating in this conference, including more than 30 ministers and representatives of the most important international organizations related to the green economy in the public and private sectors, particularly in the fields of oil and gas, electricity, water, industry, transport, waste and urban planning, in order to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the conference discussions and experiences of other countries that would be covered to support and accelerate the efforts to shift towards a green economy .
The Assistant Undersecretary for Environmental Affairs Sector at the Ministry of Environment and Water, Eng. Aisha Al Abdouli, commented that conference represents an important platform to review efforts and international experiences and the progress made towards the implementation of the green economy in the context of sustainable development, and to fight against poverty in accordance with the decisions of the Rio +20. In addition, it will be a great opportunity to assess development goals beyond 2015 on the impact of “Greening” the economic sectors.
Al Abdouli mentioned that the conference program includes two main sessions - the first will be on high-level and is intended to review the participating governments experiences and strategies in the field of transformation to the green economy and the contribution of international organizations in supporting the strategies of these countries. The second session, however, a general discussion will take place to discuss of policies on shifting to the green economy, investment, trade, technology transfer, employment opportunities, skills development and social transformation of the green economy and governance in addition to some other issues related to the green economy.
She added that the special session on the UAE will address the best practices and leading experiences in various areas of development, as well as to highlight the policies and strategies adopted in strengthening institutions and partnerships to support national initiatives of green economy.
The Assistant Undersecretary of Environmental Affairs Sector at the Ministry of Environment and Water said that there will be an official announcement about the mechanisms for implementing the partnership initiative for a green economy, according to the knowledge and the mutual interest of leading countries in green economy policy making.
The Commission has adopted the conference logo which its theme focuses on UAE initiatives in the area of green economy sustainability in various sectors.