H.E. Dr. Rashid Ahmed Bin Fahad, Minister of Environment and Water, headed the UAE delegation during the Second Session of Arab High-Level Forum on Sustainable Development conducted recently in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The forum was held under the patronage of H.E. Sheikh Ebrahim bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Bahrain’s Minister of Housing, who was in attendance along with a number of Gulf Ministers and key specialists from the government, environment and business sectors.
The UAE’s participation in the Forum is in line with the national commitment to unite the Arab World in developing innovative solutions to achieve sustainable development for the regional and international community.
During his speech at the green economy session, H.E. Bin Fahad mentioned that the UAE has made great strides in shifting towards a low-carbon green economy by implementing a wide range of sustainable solutions across various sectors. The launch of the UAE Green Growth Strategy, he said, greatly contributed to the creation of ecologically conscious economic sectors.
He added that the forum provides a platform for Arab countries to discuss innovative solutions towards adopting an environmentally friendly approach in infrastructure and the economy. He also emphasized the importance of the Gulf region’s collective efforts in developing appropriate rules and undertaking the best environmental practices for the construction sector, in light of the increasingly urgent need to address pressing environmental issues facing the global community.
The Minister highlighted the achievements of the UAE and concluded his talk with a report on current environmental initiatives, which he explained remains focused on monitoring and documenting the progress being made in the transition towards a green economy. With the UAE now accounting for about 40 per cent of green buildings in the Gulf region, this transition is well under way as a crucial part of the UAE Green Growth Strategy and the UAE Green Agenda, which emphasizes the implementation of crucial environmental practices in the fields of integrated waste management, water conservation, transportation, energy, green architecture and sustainable building.