Shoukry Stresses Need to Continue Efforts to Boost Int'l Climate Work

On Tuesday, the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and president-designate of the 2022 UN Climate Change Conference (COP27), Sameh Shoukry stressed the necessity of continuing efforts to boost international climate work, especially that of adapting to climate change and reducing emissions.

Addressing the sixth Ministerial on Climate Action (MoCA) in Sweden, Shoukry called for urgent action to implement climate pledges and the Paris Agreement.

During the MOCA's session, entitled “Determining Track of International Climate Work in 2022,” the COP27 president-designate called for looking into the potential harms of climate change and providing finance for climate issues.

Earlier in May, Egypt co-organized a ministerial meeting with Denmark and the United Kingdom in Copenhagen on the implementation of the climate pledges.

Shoukry said the meeting emphasized the political will of the various parties to focus on transforming climate pledges into actions, Ahmed Hafez, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in a statement.

Egypt will host COP27 in the Red Sea city of Sharm El-Sheikh on 7-18 November.

Egypt seeks through its presidency of COP27 to build on the outcomes of COP26 held in Glasgow last year with the aim of achieving more progress in all the aspects of climate work, Shoukry pointed out.

Egypt is keen to communicate effectively with all parties concerned with climate action, including governments, the private sector, financial institutions, civil society, and scientific and academic circles, he added.

The MoCA – an annual meeting co-hosted by Canada, the EU and China – kicked off on Tuesday with the attendance of several ministers and high-level representatives from over 30 countries, including ministers from the G20 and chairs of key party groupings in the UN climate negotiations.

The meetings provide a space for discussions on the implementation of the Paris Agreement through the promotion of ambitious climate action and the successful adoption of technical rules under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Also on Tuesday, Shoukry held talks with Vice-President of the European Commission (EC) Frans Timmermans on the sidelines of the meeting.

Earlier in the day, Shoukry also met with Canadian Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault, and his Swedish counterpart Ann Linde where they discussed boosting bilateral relations between Egypt and Sweden, especially economic relations.