MUSCAT: The Environment Authority on Wednesday held a media briefing to unveil the details of the Sultanate of Oman's participation in the 29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), scheduled to be held next November in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Oman's participation aims to highlight national efforts in the areas of climate action, environmental protection, biodiversity, promoting sustainable tourism and attracting investment.
Ibrahim Ahmed Al Ajmi, Advisor to the Chairman of the Environment Authority for Climate Affairs and Head of the Negotiating Team in the United Nations Climate Change Agreement Negotiations, said: The Sultanate of Oman’s participation in COP29 comes in solidarity with the countries of the world and to unify efforts to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and to enhance climate action and sustainable development plans. The participation includes 7 main themes, namely carbon neutrality, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, climate change adaptation projects and initiatives, food security, promoting Oman Climate Week, the Global Environmental Performance Index, the environment, nature reserves and biodiversity, energy transformation projects and initiatives such as renewable energy, green hydrogen, energy efficiency and carbon sequestration, tree planting initiatives, blue carbon, and sustainable cities.
He indicated that the most important negotiating topics for the Sultanate of Oman will focus on the goal of global climate finance, Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, the global goal of adaptation and the national adaptation plan, loss and damage, just transition and response measures, enhancing capacity building and technology transfer.
On his turn, Eng Mohammed Khalfan Al Shuaili, Deputy Head of the Sultanate of Oman Pavilion team participating in the conference, said: "This participation will contribute to highlighting and consolidating the national efforts of the Sultanate of Oman in the areas of climate action, energy transformation, environmental protection and biodiversity, in addition to promoting the components of tourism and sustainable growth in various parts of the Sultanate of Oman, as well as achieving the attraction of investment opportunities and sustainable financing in the fields of hydrogen and clean energy, biodiversity and sustainable transportation”.
He explained that the work plan for participation included holding several preparatory and coordination meetings between the relevant institutions to come up with a unified work plan and follow up the outputs and results, sources of information, participation schedules, presentation methods, discussion sessions, the participating team, the negotiating team and the distribution of tasks.
Hafez Al Shakiri, a member of the youth team participating in the conference, said: The Sultanate of Oman will participate for the first time with a youth team in the COP29 Climate Summit. Its tasks include devising a plan to highlight the participation and empowerment of Omani youth in climate change issues, representing Omani youth in discussion sessions, addressing challenges and solutions related to climate change, gaining new knowledge from the experiences of other countries, exchanging ideas and good practices, presenting Omani youth projects and initiatives that focus on sustainability and environmental conservation, as well as organizing workshops and discussion sessions for youth with the participation of youth from countries around the world to raise awareness about climate issues.
During the media briefing, Eng Nabil Al Lawati, a member of the negotiating team, presented a visual presentation on the topics that the negotiating team will discuss in the negotiating sessions.
The Environment Authority also revealed the theme and logo of the pavilion, which expresses the Sultanate of Oman as a sustainable future.
It is worth noting that the road to COP29, which aims to reach a new agreement for global financing, is a continuation of the efforts of COP28, that was held in the United Arab Emirates, during which the first global inventory of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change was conducted, and COP27, which was held in the Arab Republic of Egypt, during which the Loss and Damage Fund was approved, in addition to the outcomes of the Bonn Conference (SB60), in which preparations were made for the next COP conference. - ONA
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