UAE joins High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution

The UAE is participating in the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is heading the UAE delegation, which also includes Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment and other dignitaries.

According to the state news agency, WAM, Almheiri highlighted the UAE’s efforts in sustainable development, climate action and food security during the global meet that ends on September 27, exploring new synergies in this space with other countries in the run-up to the 28th UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) that the UAE will host in 2023.

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At the event, the UAE joined the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) to End Plastic Pollution, which aims to eliminate plastic pollution by 2040.

Launched in August, the body is working on developing an ambitious international instrument based on a comprehensive approach that ensures urgent action and effective interventions along the full lifecycle of plastics.

Almheiri attended the first in-person meeting of the HAC for Nature and People International Steering Committee, co-chaired by France, the UK, and Costa Rica, which examined the implementation of the target to designate 30 per cent of Earth’s land and ocean area as protected areas by 2030. She shared the UAE’s expectations for the upcoming 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP15) which seeks to finalise the post-2020 global biodiversity framework.

Almheiri said, “The UAE is proud to be a member of the HAC to End Plastic Pollution, whose objective aligns with the nation’s commitment to combating pollution on all fronts and reducing its negative impacts on the environment. To address the root causes of plastic pollution, our government, in partnership with the private sector, is taking measures to shift towards a more circular plastics economy and adopt environment-friendly waste management solutions.”

She added, “We are dedicated to supporting the coalition’s efforts to build a global roadmap applying an all-inclusive, sustainable, systematic, and circular approach across the full lifecycle of plastics. This includes maximising resource efficiency in plastics production, boosting the supply of recyclable plastics, increasing recycled content, promoting responsible consumption of plastics, and implementing environmentally sound management and recycling of plastic waste.”

The minister called on all countries to work towards the prevention, reduction, and elimination of plastic pollution, and to strengthen regional and global cooperation in this regard.

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Almheiri also delivered the opening remarks at the first consultation on “Food Systems and Agriculture Priorities and Potential”, co-hosted by the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE), the Office of the UAE’s Special Envoy for Climate Change, and the Food Action Alliance on the sidelines of the UNGA. The session brought together agriculture and food systems stakeholders from around the world to shape expectations for the role food security and climate-smart agriculture will play at COP28.

In addition, the minister shared the UAE’s experience in building resilience across all aspects at a roundtable themed “Joining the Effort to Drive Global Resilience”, organised by the World Economic Forum (WEF) Resilience Consortium as part of WEF’s Sustainable Development Impact Meetings.