Making environmental considerations primary in the health field

People, society, and the earth all need to be healthy if we are to have a future together. Climate negotiations will focus on the Middle East and Africa over the next two years, with COP27 taking place in Egypt this year and COP28 in the United Arab Emirates in 2023.

Still, the global emergency affects everyone in some way. To guarantee the COP discussions drive the dramatic changes necessary to restrict temperature increases to less than 1.5 degrees Celsius, the business sector has a crucial role to play in cooperating with governments and the third sector.

Contributing significantly

Businesses need to demonstrate their dedication to sustainability and environmental protection in more ways than just words. All businesses, no matter how big or little, have a responsibility to act now to reduce the impacts of climate change and to develop strategies for coping with the effects of climate change in their local communities and throughout the world.

Some people may be surprised to learn that the healthcare sector, which includes everything from medical practices to the production of pharmaceuticals, accounts for about 4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Healthcare would be the world's fifth-largest emitter if it were a country. The healthcare industry must take responsibility for its actions and play a crucial part in reducing emissions if the world is to meet the internationally agreed targets to limit global temperature increases.

Since AstraZeneca recognises the link between healthy people and a healthy planet and is confident that it is possible to offer life-changing medicines in a way that is both respectful of our planet and beneficial to society, the company has taken significant steps to reduce its carbon footprint.

Ambition Zero Carbon is a programme funded by a $1 billion investment to reduce carbon emissions to zero and strengthen supply chain resilience. Our climate strategy as a biotech firm is in line with current research. We were one of the first seven firms in the world to have our net-zero targets confirmed by the Science Based Targets Initiative using their new Net-Zero Corporate Standard.

Building a more robust ecology

AstraZeneca is working across the Middle East and Africa on a variety of programmes aimed at halting the climate disaster and constructing more resilient communities, in addition to its global efforts to integrate sustainability into corporate operations.

AstraZeneca has recently created the Ghana Living Lab in collaboration with the Circular Bioeconomy Alliance. Over the next decade, this community-led initiative will plant 4.5 million trees in an effort to restore natural forests, woodlots, and fruit trees by incorporating both traditional and modern methods of tree care. This innovative public-private partnership helps local farmers increase their social and environmental resilience and motivates them to take action in the direction of a circular bioeconomy.

To prevent electronic trash, such as obsolete mobile phones and electrical cables, from being dumped in landfills, AstraZeneca's Turkish offices are working with the country's first electronic recycling plant.

Instead, a non-profit group dedicated to reforestation in Turkey, the Turkish Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion, will benefit monetarily from the waste's sale.

Green roofs are being installed in schools across Egypt thanks to a collaboration between the Swedish Embassy and the Egyptian Ministries of Education and Environment, making classrooms more sustainable and educating the next generation about the need of protecting the environment.

Building a more robust ecology

AstraZeneca is working across the Middle East and Africa on a variety of programmes aimed at halting the climate disaster and constructing more resilient communities, in addition to its global efforts to integrate sustainability into corporate operations.

AstraZeneca has recently created the Ghana Living Lab in collaboration with the Circular Bioeconomy Alliance. Over the next decade, this community-led initiative will plant 4.5 million trees in an effort to restore natural forests, woodlots, and fruit trees by incorporating both traditional and modern methods of tree care. This innovative public-private partnership helps local farmers increase their social and environmental resilience and motivates them to take action in the direction of a circular bioeconomy.

To prevent electronic trash, such as obsolete mobile phones and electrical cables, from being dumped in landfills, AstraZeneca's Turkish offices are working with the country's first electronic recycling plant.

Instead, a non-profit group dedicated to reforestation in Turkey, the Turkish Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion, will benefit monetarily from the waste's sale.

Green roofs are being installed in schools across Egypt thanks to a collaboration between the Swedish Embassy and the Egyptian Ministries of Education and Environment, making classrooms more sustainable and educating the next generation about the need of protecting the environment.

The UAE National Nutrition Strategy 2022-2030 has been released by the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) has released the UAE National Nutrition Strategy 2022-2030, which provides a detailed plan for creating a sustainable food system that prioritises the health of its population.

The UAE Minister of Health, H.E. Abdulrahman bin Mohamed Al Owais, commented on the new strategy, saying that the MoHAP will be implementing it in collaboration with other stakeholders, using clear coordination channels, and basing all policies on its "One Health" concept. "One Health" is an integrated and unifying tool for the joint assessment and control of zoonotic diseases.

H.E. Al Owais has said that the government will "do all possible" to reduce the incidence of lifestyle-related disorders and improve the outcomes of national health indicators. The National Nutrition Strategy 2022-2030 will help enhance data based on defined criteria for monitoring progress and evaluating results, and it is "driven by the National Strategy for Wellbeing and the We the UAE 2031 Strategy."

In the presence of Salem Al Darmaki, Advisor to the Minister of Health and Prevention, Nouf Khamis Al Ali, Director of the Health Promotion Department at MoHAP, and 22 other representatives from government and private sector organisations, the strategy was unveiled at an event at the Etihad Museum in Dubai in November.

Al Darmaki remarked that the strategy's ultimate goal is to enhance nutrition for people of all ages, from pregnant women and their infants to school-aged children and young adults as well as the elderly. In addition, he said, "we must also address dietary risk factors and work to prevent all forms of malnutrition."

Meanwhile, Al Ali emphasised that the National Nutrition Strategy 2022-2030 will adopt data-based interventions to create an environment conducive to good nutrition and to develop implementation solutions for optimal infant and child nutrition, building on the progress made by previous strategies, programmes, and other complementary policies.

Supporting the federal policy to combat childhood obesity and promote maternal and child health, national standards for preconception care, "the newly unveiled approach will also help build healthier school settings and coordinate efforts to encourage healthy eating habits," Al Ali stated.

Among the goals of the National Nutrition Strategy 2022-2030 are the establishment of sustainable and adaptable food systems for healthy diets; the provision of health systems and comprehensive coverage of basic nutrition measures; the provision of social protection and nutrition education; the provision of safe and supportive environments for nutrition at all ages; and the implementation of an advanced food strategy.