EVENTS CLIMATE CHANGE WHEN ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL
OPEC Fund Director-General Alkhalifa pleads for a bespoke energy transition at the inaugural Saudi Green Initiative Forum
C limate change is a universal challenge and the enormity of the task makes it imperative to find an approach that also takes into account its complexity. “The key is to depart from a one- size-fits-all strategy and to commit to a custom-made, tailored and country- focused support”, OPEC Fund Director- General Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said at the inaugural meeting of the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI) Forum in Riyadh. The event brought together global leaders of government, business, finance and civil society to discuss and mobilize collective climate action in conjunction with the COP26 Climate Conference in Glasgow. Dr. Alkhalifa underlined: “We must commit to carbon-neutrality as we strive to ensure universal energy access and address the needs of disadvantaged
people for modern, clean and affordable energy.” The task ahead is huge, he added: “The world will need to invest around US$90 trillion in infrastructure over the next 15 years”. But it needs more than financing: “We must ensure that the outcome is balanced and places a just emphasis on the environmental prerogative along with the economic and social challenges”. This can be achieved with the help of designated, country-specific roadmaps which “should integrate climate mitigation and adaptation action with bold energy access efforts”, the Director- General said. The OPEC Fund with a global footprint and operations in more than 125 countries to date has committed nearly US$4.5 billion to climate financing and is prepared to take on an even bigger role. Dr. Alkhalifa announced:
“We aim at stepping up our climate finance and capacity-building efforts to help our partner countries, and we will also utilize our private sector operations, which will be pivotal for filling investment gaps.”
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