In Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2023 on October 8, 2023, His Excellency Mr. Adel Al-Jubeir – Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Saudi Climate Envoy said that more than $186 billion has been allocated to implement the Saudi Green Initiative, which includes 77 initiatives. During a panel discussion on the first day of the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2023 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, HE Mr. Adel Al-Jubeir explained that the initiatives implemented by Saudi Arabia are aimed to achieve its climate goals through designing cities in a way reducing congestion times so as to lead to less pollution. “If these initiatives save an hour per day for each person, they will save the equivalent of four years of his life when he reaches the age of 80,” he said.
A roadmap to achieve the 2021-launched Saudi Green Initiative to plant 10 billion trees was announced at the climate week following a two-year-long feasibility study. It will be implemented in two phases, with 600 million trees by 2030. Saudi Arabia’s Sustainable Tourism Global Center (STGC) launched the Global Solutions Hub (GSH) to invest in research and help quantify the impact that tourism has on the Kingdom and in other parts of the world. Saudi Arabia and India signed an MoU on electrical interconnections, and hydrogen and clean energy supply chains. The agreement was signed by the Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and India’s Minister of Power and Renewable Energy Raj Kumar Singh (Source: Al Arabiya News, 2023).
HE Mr. Adel Al-Jubeir Al-Jubeir said that the initiatives also include converting waste into energy, as well as planting trees of various types, including mangroves. “This will be done in a scientific and thoughtful way to determine the shrubs and plants most suitable for the areas, how to grow them, and the amount of water that can be used so that it can be a sustainable agriculture.”
HE Al-Jubeir emphasized that Saudi Arabia seeks to be a pioneering country in the field of preserving the environment and reducing the effects of climate change. He called for a pragmatic and practical approach to address climate change issues. HE Al-Jubeir also reviewed the Kingdom’s initiatives and programs in this regard at the local, regional and international levels, including the Green Saudi and Green Middle East initiatives, adopting a circular carbon economy approach, diversifying energy sources.
