A statement was issued today by the ministerial meeting of the ministers concerned with the climate change file, held in Riyadh on October 08, 2023, on the sidelines of the 2023 Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Climate Week, as follows:

“We, the Ministers of Climate of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries meeting in Riyadh on Oct. 8th, 2023, on the sidelines of the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week (MENACW 2023), affirm our commitment to the principles and provisions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, and hence:

1. We thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for hosting the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week, and for hosting this ministerial meeting. We also thank and congratulate the Arab Republic of Egypt for successfully hosting COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, and we look forward to another successful meeting in the United Arab Emirates.

2. We affirm our full support for the United Arab Emirates hosting the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28). We also praise the four pillars on which COP28 is focused:

1. Fast-tracking the just, equitable and orderly energy transition and slashing emissions before 2030.

2. Transforming climate finance by delivering on old promises and setting the framework for a new deal on finance.

3. Putting nature, people, lives, and livelihoods at the heart of climate action, and

4. Mobilising for an inclusive COP.

We confirm that the outcomes should observe the principles of the UNFCCC, the Paris Agreement, and the regional and national conditions and priorities.

3. We stress the need for a gradual approach to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, including reducing emissions, based on realistic foundations that consider diverse national conditions, and recognise the importance of different applicable solutions and technologies. We emphasise that achieving net zero requires the use of all solutions, including the latest scientific developments, various approaches such as the Circular Carbon Economy, social and economic development, technologies, market maturity, and promoting the most efficient solutions in line with differing national circumstances.

4. We affirm the importance of observing the underlying principles of the climate agreements, especially the principles of equity and common, but differentiated, responsibilities, in implementing the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement. All must take into account the principle of developing countries’ right to sustainable development and economic diversification, as well as the social and economic impacts resulting from response measures to climate change.

5. We affirm that achieving a just, equitable and orderly energy transition is based on three pillars of equal importance: ensuring energy security, economic development for all countries, and combating climate change.

6. Given the diversity of emission sources, we note the importance of comprehensively utilising and investing in all solutions and technologies to confront climate change and its effects. These include renewable energy and its storage, energy efficiency, the use of hydrogen as a fuel, carbon capture, storage and reuse, nature-based decarbonisation solutions, and direct air carbon capture.

7. We stress the importance of the international community avoiding excluding major energy sources or neglecting to invest in them, which would lead to challenges in energy markets and a disproportionate impact on developing societies and countries. We affirm the need to adopt a balanced approach policy to promote global economic growth, which links closely to energy security and availability, capitalising on the different energy sources and working to achieve the transition to clean energy in a practical, gradual, and fair manner. It is also important to take a comprehensive, focused approach to climate change in all areas, including mitigation, adaptation, finance, capacity building and technology transfer.

8. We encourage efforts to triple global renewable energy production through existing targets and policies. We also support reaching such a ratio in other low- and zero-emission technologies, including source emission control and decarbonisation technologies, in line with national conditions, by 2030.

9. The GCC nations are developing countries with distinctive environmental and climatic conditions. These include rising sea levels, rising temperatures, water scarcity, desertification, sandstorms, torrential floods, hurricanes, land degradation, as well as the challenges of afforestation, loss of biodiversity and ecosystems, and their impact on public health and food security. These challenges require adaptation, and therefore we acknowledge the importance of the Global Goal on Adaptation for the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement. This underscores the importance of adopting a comprehensive framework to complement the program at COP28, as well as completing the work of the Global Goal on Adaptation. We also stress the necessity of preparedness and planning to adapt to 1.5c and higher.

10. We affirm our commitment to the Paris Agreement, which states that climate finance and financing for implementation are the sole responsibility of developed countries, and not developing countries. We also stress the importance of fulfilling the pledge to mobilise $100 billion per year on the part of developed countries by 2020 to support developing countries and advance progress towards setting the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCGQ) for scaling up climate finance. We look forward to ambitious outcomes regarding the activation of the Loss and Damage Fund at COP28, in accordance with the principles of the Paris Agreement.

11. We affirm our commitment to reaching an ambitious and fair outcome for the Global Stocktake process in compliance with the Paris Agreement and its implementation mechanisms, through the UAE’s hosting of COP28. This will send comprehensive political messages about the need to accelerate work and cooperation to create the necessary technologies that achieve the goals of Paris Agreement, including renewable energy and abatement and removal technologies. We stress the need to address the effects of response measures resulting from mitigation activities. We also affirm our commitment to working towards activating the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) and emphasising its importance. We call on developed countries to bridge the gaps in support of adaptation, climate finance, capacity building, and technology transfer in line with the needs and priorities of developing countries. The outcomes must preserve and activate the principle of common, but differentiated, responsibility and differentiated capabilities to further implement the agreement. We affirm our commitment to playing a constructive role in enhancing international cooperation and activating effective partnerships to support mitigation and accelerated adaptation in support of achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement.

12. We praise the role of youth in our societies and their contribution to leading efforts to confront climate change, with their important role in Climate Week in the Middle East and North Africa region and COP28, as it is critical for youth to have an active role in these vital paths for their future.

13. We emphasise the importance of cooperation between our countries in developing and implementing various climate solutions, especially those that suit the needs of the region. This can be accomplished through international and regional efforts, such as the Green Middle East Initiative, the Mangrove Alliance for Climate initiative, and others. We also call on support for the efforts of COP28, which will serve as a legacy of climate leadership for the GCC countries.

Source: Saudi Press Agency