Minister of Climate Change and Environment of the United Arab Emirates HE Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak at the Qatar International Agricultural Exhibition (AgriteQ) 2025.
Doha: Minister of Climate Change and Environment in the United Arab Emirates, HE Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak, emphasized that the UAE and Qatar share numerous visions on environmental and climate issues, as well as avenues for environment conservation, countering the climate change and supporting food security in the two nations and the region.
Speaking to Qatar News Agency (QNA) to mark the UAE's participation in the 12th Qatar International Agricultural Exhibition (AgriteQ) 2025, as a guest of honour, Her Excellency highlighted that the UAE participates with an integrated pavilion that intends to shine a spotlight on its journey in the area of agriculture and the achievements accomplished in this sector, in addition to showcasing the ministry's contributions alongside other entities to advancing the agricultural and food production through leveraging cutting-edge technologies.
The participation aims to share expertise on best agricultural practices with a range of participating nations to foster an enduring agricultural sector that contributes to achieving sustainable food security for the generations to come, HE Al Dahak underlined.
Commenting on the cooperation areas between the two countries, Her Excellency stated that there is a close cooperation as part of the meetings of the ministers concerned with municipal affairs, agriculture, and the environment within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states' agenda to serve as a platform for coordinating numerous critical issues.
She noted the bilateral cooperation on research which highlighted projects and milestones in preserving the environmental diversity, quality of water, air and soil, as well as sharing scientific expertise.
Minister of Municipality HE Abdullah bin Hamad bin Abdullah Al Attiyah met with Minister of Climate Change and Environment of the United Arab Emirates HE Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak on the sidelines of the Qatar International Agricultural Exhibition (AgriteQ) 2025.
The UAE-Gulf cooperation is continuing through the GCC states, particularly in environmental, agricultural and food security fields, Her Excellency underlined, indicating that there is always a consensus in the Gulf ministerial meetings on unified laws that help advance multiple sectors, foster environmental efforts and achieve food security as part of the shared Gulf vision.
Launched in 2023, the UAE Net-Zero by 2050 strategic initiative intends to reduce carbon emissions in key six sectors, namely energy, industry, agriculture, transportation, construction and waste through 25 government programs, in addition to enhancing the nature-based solutions (NbS) such as planting 100 million mangroves by 2030, given its role in carbon sequestration and coastal environmental protection, HE Al Dahak highlighted.
She added that through the 2050 Energy Strategy, the UAE intends to triple the renewable energy's contribution by 2030, and surge national investments that range between AED150 and AED200 billion to meet the increasing demand for energy.
As for adaptation to climate change, Her Excellency pointed out that the National Climate Adaptation Action Plan aims to protect vital sectors, such as water, health, tourism, energy and infrastructure from the climate change-induced effects.
HE Al Dahak noted that her country hosted the United Nations Climate Conference (COP28) in late 2023, which culminated in launching the Alterra Fund with USD30 billion to bridge the climate financing gap and stimulate investments totaling USD250 billion by 2030.
The loss and damage fund was activated during the conference, with financial commitments amounting to USD853 million, including USD100 million from the UAE, Her Excellency highlighted, emphasizing that the UAE continued efforts by building on the outcomes of COP28 through a trilateral collaboration with the presidencies of COP29 in Azerbaijan and COP30 in Brazil, ensuring continuity and enhancing climate action outcomes.
As for NbS, HE Al Dahak indicated that the UAE, in collaboration with Indonesia, launched the Mangrove Alliance for Climate Strategy comprising 45 countries to expand mangrove planting, in pursuit of combating global warming and protecting coastal ecosystems, noting the UAE's initiative to raise global awareness of water scarcity, develop remediation tools such as innovative technological solutions, and foster international cooperation in this area.
The UAE has made tangible progress in protecting biodiversity through enacting legislation, expanding swaths of protected areas, rehabilitating eco-systems and propagating the endangered species, Her Excellency pointed out, highlighting that the UAE's framework of the National Biodiversity Strategy 2031 aims to boost natural reserves and catalyze community's participation in the conservation efforts.
The UAE has 49 protected areas, covering 15.5 percent of its territory, with agriculture representing the core pillar for the sustainable food security, given the challenges such as water scarcity and limited arable lands, thereby triggering innovative solutions to double agricultural production and address climate change, she highlighted.
Internationally, Her Excellency elucidated that the UAE has succeeded in incorporating food security into the global climate agendas during the COP28 conference, culminating in launching the UAE Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action, which has, heretofore, been endorsed by 160 states to promote the solutions of modern agriculture in fight hunger and fostering the global food security.
