Abu Dhabi: The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MoCCAE) has organised the ninth National Dialogue for Climate Ambition (NDCA), held under the theme “Decarbonising the Buildings Sector” and dedicated to accelerating the national efforts across all sectors to achieve net-zero targets by 2050.
The session was held in Aldar Properties’ headquarters in Yas Mall, Abu Dhabi, with the participation of Mr. Talal Al Dhiyebi, CEO of Aldar Properties, and the presence of 100 representatives of relevant authorities from federal and local government entities and the private sector.
Ms. Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, notd that cutting down on carbon emissions is the cornerstone of efforts to tackle climate change, as it has cross-cutting benefits for climate mitigation measures to prevent the risk of loss and damage.
The building and construction sector contributes significantly to the national carbon footprint. Globally, the buildings and construction sector is estimated to account for up to 40 percent of annual GHG emissions. This sector has the most embedded emissions as it relies heavily on concrete, which is one of the most used products globally. The industry is increasingly recognising that it must act now to reduce its environmental impact.
the minister shared.
“We will focus on five opportunities in the buildings sector: ensuring green procurement practices within one’s operations by adopting procurement standards that promote partnering with suppliers of low-carbon products, updating building regulations for new buildings, retrofitting existing buildings to improve energy efficiency, increasing penetration of efficient cooling, as well as the use of solar thermal in residential areas, and reducing waste generation and promoting recycling of construction and demolition waste,” Ms. Almheiri added.
The minister further praised the efforts of Aldar Properties and their effective contributions in reducing carbon levels towards achieving climate neutrality by 2050.
The ninth NDCA session witnessed nine new companies joining the “UAE Climate Responsible Companies Pledge,” including Market Solutions, CEMEX, Cool Earth Solution, Serco, Sharjah National Oil Corporation, Sobha, AECOM, DNV, and Tabreed.
The total number of companies joining and signing the “UAE Climate Responsible Companies Pledge” has reached 62, mainly from the private sector.
NDCA is a series of industry-specific assemblies in various sectors such as cement, waste management, finance, and others, aimed at raising sectoral climate ambitions and informing the UAE’s roadmap to net zero by 2050.