DUBAI, UAE – The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MoCCAE) Monday launched the UAE Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge.
The pledge aims to increase the engagement of the private sector in the country’s decarbonization drive, in line with the UAE Net Zero 2050 Strategic Initiative.
The pledge forms the basis of future collaborations between the private sector, non-governmental organizations (NGO) and international organizations.
These include Emirates Nature, in association with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a strategic implementation partner of the pledge, which aims to support private sector entities in implementing their net-zero plans.
The launch took place as part of the fourth stage of the National Dialogue for Climate Ambition (NDCA), a series of sector-specific assemblies aimed at establishing a national sustainability culture and highlighting the country’s efforts to achieve climate neutrality.
The fourth NDCA took place under the theme, “Roadmap to achieve net zero in the hospitality sector”.
Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, said, “We are pleased to introduce the UAE Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge, and there is no better place to do this than at NDCA, where we build rapport with all sectors to support their climate ambitions and turn them into active partners in our net-zero drive.”
She said, “The pledge will help us, the UAE Government, to engage with entities that are keen to make an active contribution to our climate neutrality movement and align their efforts to achieve our common objective.”
She added, “I invite all companies to show that they care about their impact on our climate, and are ready and willing to translate their commitment into action, by signing the UAE Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge.”
The event saw 21 companies across key sectors, such as cement, aluminum and steel, join the pledge.
The companies include BEEAH, Emerson, Emirates Nature-WWF, Majid Al Futtaim Group, Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC, Masdar, Emirates Global Aluminium, Emirates Steel Arkan Group, Aldar Properties, Emirates Environmental Group, Strata, Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat), Chalhoub Group, Pure Harvest, AESG, Taka Solutions, Lafarge Emirates Cement, EY, EV Lab and TotalEnergies.
The companies have committed to intensifying their collective efforts to combat climate change, by measuring and reporting their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in a transparent manner.
The aim is to draft ambitious science-based plans to reduce their carbon footprint and sharing these plans with the UAE Government to help achieve the national net-zero target by 2050.
The signatories also pledged to consider climate change mitigation and adaptation as core values and principles in their business and operational models.
They also pledged to adopt an all-inclusive approach that engages the youth, women and vulnerable segments of society in drafting their net-zero plans.
The launch of the pledge is part of MoCCAE’s initiatives aimed at scaling up the UAE’s climate action, in response to the call of the Glasgow Climate Pact, an outcome of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), for countries to adopt higher GHG emission reduction targets.
The keenness of the companies to sign the pledge reflects the awareness of private sector entities of the serious threat posed by climate change and its adverse effects on the environment, food security, water security and public health.