Riyadh, June 5, 2024 — Saudi Arabia and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) celebrated World Environment Day 2024 with the theme “Our land. Our future.” This global event saw participation from over 150 nations, emphasizing the crucial role of land in sustaining life on Earth.

In his address, Eng. Abdulrahman Abdulmohsen AlFadley, the Minister of Environment, Water, and Agriculture, highlighted Saudi Arabia’s efforts to preserve land and reduce degradation both regionally and globally. He spoke about the Middle East Green Initiative, aimed at enhancing cooperation to mitigate land degradation and promote vegetation cover, biodiversity, food and water security, and climate adaptation. He also mentioned Saudi Arabia’s global contributions, such as the Coral Research & Development Accelerator Platform and the G20 Land Initiative launched during its G20 Presidency in 2020. The recent announcement of the Global Water Organization further emphasizes Saudi Arabia’s commitment to international water conservation and sustainability.

AlFadley announced that Saudi Arabia will host the sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in December. This event aims to foster significant advancements in combating land degradation and the effects of drought, impacting over three billion people worldwide. He also unveiled national projects such as the Environmental Grants & Incentives Program and the National Academy of the Environment.

Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP, addressed the global issue of land degradation affecting livelihoods and food security. She stressed the importance of land restoration, combating desertification, and building resilience to drought as crucial strategies to tackle climate change, nature loss, pollution, and waste. Andersen called for collective responsibility and international cooperation to confront these challenges and implement sustainable agricultural systems worldwide.

This year’s World Environment Day featured over 4,000 environmental activities globally. Celebrated annually since 1973, World Environment Day has become the largest global platform for environmental outreach, mobilizing millions of people to protect the planet.

Source & Photo Credit : Saudi Press Agency