Sultan Al Jaber To Lead The UN Climate Conference

Dr. Al Jaber is the Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) and has served as Special Envoy for Climate Change for two terms (2010–2016, 2020–present) and played a proactive participatory role at over ten COPs, including the historic Paris COP21 in 2015.

"He brings to this task two decades of executive business and leadership experience in government, climate policy, and across the renewable and conventional energy sectors," stated the report.

The appointment made by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Court, follows a directive by the UAE president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The UAE will host the annual climate summit at Expo City, Dubai, from November 30 through December 12, 2023.

According to the report, Dr. Al Jaber is the first CEO to ever serve as COP President, having played a key role in shaping the country’s clean energy path. As the founding CEO of Masdar, he has overseen its mandate to accelerate the adoption of renewables within the UAE, across the region, and globally.

report added: "To date, Masdar has made substantial contributions to the UAE’s renewable energy targets, playing a key role in expanding the country’s portfolio with clean energy investments in over 40 countries, including several developing countries in Africa and Asia and vulnerable island states."

Under a new partnership with TAQA, Mubadala, and ADNOC, Masdar is set to become one of the largest renewable energy investors in the world, with an ambitious target of growing to at least 100 GW of renewable energy capacity globally by 2030.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Dr. Al Jaber led the UAE’s successful bid to host the headquarters of the "International Renewable Energy Agency" (IRENA) in Masdar City, with a mission to promote clean technology and sustainable development globally, said the report.

As CEO of ADNOC since 2016, he has played a transformative role in decarbonizing and diversifying the company’s operations and investments, placing sustainability at the heart of its business, and spearheading a drive to make today’s energies cleaner while investing in the clean energies of tomorrow.

According to the report, Shamma Al Mazrui, UAE Minister of State for Youth Affairs, and Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), will join Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber’s COP28 UAE team as the Youth Climate Champion and UN Climate Change High-Level Champion, respectively.

These appointments come at a pivotal moment as the world faces increasing climate impacts and challenges to energy, food, and water security, as well as reversing biodiversity loss.

Limiting global warming to 1.5°C will require significant reductions in emissions, a pragmatic, practical, and realistic approach to the energy transition, and more help for emerging economies.

The announcement further highlights the UAE’s regional leadership in climate action and its role as a global advocate for clean energy. The UAE has three of the biggest and least expensive solar projects in the world. It has also invested more than $50 billion in renewable energy projects in more than 70 countries and plans to invest at least $50 billion more over the next ten years, according to a report.

As the first country in the region to ratify the Paris Agreement, the first to commit to an economy-wide reduction in emissions, and the first to announce a Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative, the UAE is committed to raising ambition in this critical decade for climate action. The UAE is honoured to have been chosen to host COP28, according to the report.

By Sumita Pawar