Author: Web Desk

The Muslim Council of Elders, under the chairmanship of His Eminence Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, announced that four international youth projects in the realm of climate change have won awards during the Faith Pavilion at COP28. These projects emerged as winners in a competition initiated by the Council, designed for graduates of the Emerging Peacemakers Forum.

Drawing around 50 youth projects from 11 countries, the competition’s objective was to bolster and motivate the youth to craft innovative and sustainable solutions to combat the climate crisis. It also aimed to empower young minds, enabling their active involvement in public discussions and decision-making processes concerning environmental policies and strategies for mitigating climate change.

Judge Mohamed Abdelsalam, the Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Elders, highlighted the Council’s profound interest in the youth as the torchbearers of hope and peace in the world. He further underscored the Council’s ongoing init
iatives, actively working towards empowering youth, channeling their potential, and fostering their positive contributions to address global challenges, with a particular emphasis on climate change.

The Secretary-General elaborated on the support extended by the Muslim Council of Elders to the winning projects which aligns with the coordination of the Faith Pavilion at COP28, the first of its kind in the history of COP conferences, which is organized in collaboration with the COP28 presidency, the Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence in the UAE, and the United Nations Environment Programme. The Pavilion serves as a global platform for interfaith dialogue, aiming to formulate effective solutions to the climate crisis.

The competition encompassed various domains, including climate change and climate justice. ‘EmpoweHer,’ the winning project from Gambia, seeks to train approximately 5,000 women by 2030 in the Konta Niang region. It focuses on the adoption and implementation of sustainable agricultural practic
es, targeting a 90% reduction in emissions associated with traditional agricultural systems.

In the second category, emphasizing social inclusion and empowering youth from diverse religious backgrounds to assume leadership roles in climate action, the ‘Climatic Peace Initiative’ emerged triumphant. This initiative aims to provide comprehensive training and guidance to youth, coupled with the necessary funding to establish climate initiatives fostering cross-cultural dialogue and addressing climate challenges.

In the capacity-building category related to education and training in climate change, promoting an entrepreneurial culture as a pathway to address climate change, an initiative from Cameroon secured the prize. The initiative seeks to fortify youth resilience in combating violent extremism by building capacities and facilitating climate actions to preserve wildlife, specifically snails, whose economic, health, and nutritional value are significant. The project focuses on identifying easy and affordable
methods for cultivating them within the Cameroonian environment while empowering youth to manage this project.

Also among the winners, a project from Albania clinched an award in the category of the role of religions in addressing climate change. The project aims to raise awareness among youth of different religions regarding the environmental challenges posed by climate change and their potential role in addressing these challenges locally. It also involves engaging religious communities to collaborate on environmental protection initiatives.

The Muslim Council of Elders is organising the Faith Pavilion at COP28 in collaboration with the COP28 Presidency, the Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence in the UAE, and the United Nations Environment Programme. Held from December 1 to 12 at Expo City Dubai, the pavilion will feature representatives of nine religions participating in around 70 dialogue sessions with over 300 speakers from around the world to formulate a common vision and take a unified stance among
religious leaders, scholars, environmental experts, youth, women, and representatives of indigenous peoples in addressing the adverse effects of climate change.

Source: Emirates News Agency

The 28th United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP28) in Dubai is bound to make ambitious results in global climate action, Wopke Hoekstra, the European Union’s Commissioner for Climate Action, told the Emirates News Agency (WAM).

‘We cannot leave Dubai without more ambition on climate mitigation,’ he said on the sidelines of the conference.

‘If we fail to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement, no amount of money will be enough to cover the damage. Just look at what’s already happening with a global temperature increase of 1.2 degrees,’ Hoekstra pointed out.

EU’s single voice

At COP28, the European Union calls on all parties to take urgent action to bring down greenhouse gas emissions and respect all the commitments made under the Paris Agreement, he noted.

‘As always, the 27 EU Member States speak with one voice, based on our common negotiating position. With our strong EU mandate, we will do our utmost in Dubai to drive forward climate action and build a greener future where nobody is left behind
.’

The Commissioner observed that COP28 marks a crunch moment for global climate action. ‘The EU’s bar for success is high. There is no time to lose.’

Commitment to deliver a successful outcome

The commissioner said that in light of the several conversations he had with Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and COP28 President, he believes that “he and his team are very committed to delivering a successful outcome for the world and next generations.’

Hoekstra is confident that COP28 Presidency understand the need to facilitate the highest possible ambition, especially with regard to mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage and climate finance.

Significance of Global Stocktake

He emphasised the significance of the first-ever UN Global Stocktake at COP28 – an exercise for all countries to look back at their progress on climate action after the Paris Agreement and draw conclusions on how much is still to be done.

‘It is already clear that the world is not on track to
limit global warming to 1.5 °C. But the window is still open. The Global Stocktake is a moment for all countries to reflect and act without delay. Every party needs to accelerate their climate ambitions.’

Hoekstra expressed his optimism that the word could still offer the next generations a 1.5-degree future [global warming limit]. ‘It requires that the entire world takes action to reduce emissions and prepare for the impacts of climate change.’

Crucial Loss and Damage fund

Talking about operationalising the Loss and Damage Fund, a breakthrough achieved on the very first day of COP28, to which EU member states have made significant contributions, the commissioner said, ‘I want to make sure this fund becomes operational. It is important that the fund supports the most vulnerable and that every country that has the ability to contribute to the fund actually does so.’

He stressed it is important that every country in the world with the ability to contribute actually does so.

‘This is our responsibility to a
ct, and not only the EU, but the whole world. Equally, climate finance and how we actively support nations in the Global South to mitigate and adapt to climate change, need to be high on the agenda,’ Hoekstra said.

He quoted a ‘good news’, the recent estimate of OECD (the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) that said developed nations may have achieved their overdue promise of US$100 billion to help poorer countries cope with climate change in 2022. Of that, the EU and its 27 Member States contributed around US$30 billion (pound 28.5 billion), the commissioner said.

Need for urgent action

Talking about the urgent need to act, he said, ‘Climate change is a crisis that we all face.’

Every country in the world is already confronting the impacts, whether it is flooding after heavy rains, extended droughts, extreme weather events, or loss of habitats and livelihoods.

Science, meanwhile, is abundantly clear about what we need to do and keeps giving us warning calls in every report released,
the commissioner pointed out.

‘We cannot steer away from our climate goals – future generations across the world are depending on us. This is why, I will continue to push for the highest possible climate ambition in Dubai.’

Source: Emirates News Agency

The Dubai Business Women Council (DBWC) has issued a comprehensive report on recent discussions held during the second session of the Industry Insight round tables, which focus on various economic sectors.

The report offers an overview of opportunities, challenges, and growth outlooks for women in the finance and financial services sector. It also examines the UAE’s current Fintech landscape and the role women play in navigating challenges and building the future of Fintech.

Participating in the initiative’s second session were members of the council who are industry experts and specialists in Fintech, which has begun to take centre stage both in the region and across the world. The report includes an outline of the Fintech landscape and offers insights into the opportunities and challenges currently arising as the sector witnesses a transformative wave towards artificial intelligence, cryptocurrencies, and blockchain technologies.

According to the report, participants in the session lauded the government
‘s smart transformation and highlighted the need for robust governance that ensures the security of digital transactions. They recommended that upcoming Fintech trends expand beyond financial dimensions to include a focus on carbon footprint management. Furthermore, they predicted a 20 per cent rise in digital activities, reflecting the transition towards a cashless economy.

The report shed light on an important aspect of the discussions – the under-representation of women in Fintech, which reveals the need for strengthened gender inclusion, particularly in high-level positions.

It also discussed key trends influencing the future of Fintech, which are based in technological developments. These trends include the boom in artificial intelligence and machine learning, the rapid adoption of digital payment methods, and the increasing influence of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Alongside the growing focus on financial inclusion, these sector trends forecast a future with more personalised financial
guidance, efficient payment systems, and projected changes to traditional banking services.

In terms of the UAE’s current Fintech landscape, the sector is led by a number of key catalysts, including regulatory support from the public sector, governmental investment initiatives, and a robust talent pool specialised in technology, finance, and business. Other developments emerging on the scene are surging investments in Fintech, increasingly widespread startups, and the integration of Fintech into various sectors, from retail to healthcare to education.

Source: Emirates News Agency