Saint John’s [Antigua and Barbuda], May 14 (ANI/WAM): Ahmed bin Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State, participated in the 9th Summit of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) and the 28th meeting of the Ministerial Council of the ACS, which were held in Antigua, the Republic of Guatemala under the theme “Building Resilience through Partnerships in the Caribbean”.

The meetings focused on issues related to climate change, energy security and economic development.

During his speech at the summit, Al Sayegh stressed the strength of relations and the many common interests of the UAE and the Caribbean region, including supporting economic growth, food security and sustainability.

Al Sayegh also highlighted the UAE’s hosting of the 28th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), which will take place from November 30 to December 12, 2023 in Dubai Expo City.

Al Sayegh emphasized that the COP28 conference will stress the importance of mobilizing the efforts of all concerned parties and the need for international cooperation in order to achieve a coordinated response on global climate action and achieve tangible progress in addressing the effects of climate change.

In this context, Al Sayegh noted the UAE’s keenness to explore opportunities for cooperation with Caribbean countries, which are amongst the most vulnerable to the repercussions of climate change, to benefit from opportunities that will promote sustainable economic and social development in the region.

Al Sayegh stressed that the UAE’s approach is based on building bridges of communication and cooperation with the international community, which the country will also follow in its presidency of the COP28 conference to focus on inclusiveness and help achieve practical results and outcomes.

“We will continue to highlight the issue of climate change in support of the 2030 Agenda for the Sustainable Development Goals, which has become a key pillar of the UAE’s cooperation with Central America and the Caribbean, ” Al Sayegh added.

Al Sayegh noted that this year marks the 5th anniversary of the signing of the framework cooperation agreement between the UAE and the Association of Caribbean States.

That agreement was signed during the first UAE-Caribbean Cooperation Forum, held in 2018 in Dubai, which witnessed the participation of more than 400 senior government officials, business leaders, decision-makers and investors from the UAE and the Caribbean, including more than 40 ministers from Caribbean countries.

The year 2017 witnessed the launch of the USD 50 million UAE-Caribbean Renewable Energy Fund, aimed at implementing clean energy projects in 16 Caribbean states to help reduce reliance on traditional fuels, make a positive contribution to sustainable energy and enhance climate resilience.

“Since its inception in 2017, the Fund has maintained an active role in improving energy security and building local expertise and capacity in the renewable energy sector. As one of the largest renewable energy grant initiatives in the Caribbean, the Fund projects have contributed to reducing energy costs in the region and improving resilience to natural disasters,” Al Sayegh stated.

On the sidelines of the summit meetings, Al Sayegh met with President Alejandro Giammattei of Guatemala, heads of participating delegations, and a number of foreign ministers of participating Caribbean countries, where they discussed a number of issues of common interest, as well as ways to enhance cooperation between the UAE and the Caribbean.

An air transport agreement, a memorandum of understanding for political consultations, and a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of cybersecurity were also signed with the Republic of Guatemala.

In 2017, the UAE joined the Association of Caribbean States as an observer member, and the UAE-Caribbean Renewable Energy Partnership Fund project was established in the same year to support the climate goals of Small Island Developing States.

Since its inception, the Fund has maintained an active and effective role in improving energy security and building local expertise and capacities in the renewable energy sector. (ANI/WAM)