Dr Sultan Al Jaber appointed COP28 UAE President-Designate

After serving two tenures as the UAE Special Envoy for Climate Change, His Excellency Dr. Sultan Al Jaber will serve as the COP28 President-Designate, the UAE announced on Thursday.

Under the directive of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Court, on Thursday appointed H.E. Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber as President-Designate for the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28).

H.E. Dr. Al Jaber will develop the COP28 agenda, in partnership with the UNFCCC’s Executive Secretary Simon Stiell and the Egyptian COP27 President Sameh Shoukry.

Her Excellency Shamma Al Mazrui, UAE Minister of State for Youth Affairs, and Her Excellency Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), will join Dr. Al Jaber’s COP28 UAE team as the Youth Climate Champion and UN Climate Change High-Level Champion, respectively.

The UAE will host COP28, the annual climate summit, at Expo City, Dubai, from 30th November - 12th December, 2023.

Climate action pioneer in the region

As the first country in the region to ratify the Paris Agreement, the first to commit to an economy-wide reduction in emissions, and the first to announce a Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative, the UAE is committed to raising ambition in this critical decade for climate action. The UAE is honored to have been endorsed as the host for COP28.

Its bid for this role was rooted in its commitment to global responsibility and climate action in recognition of the critical importance of COP28 as the first Global Stocktake (GST) review since the Paris Agreement. As such, the UAE has appointed a strong and diverse leadership team to support practical, inclusive, and transformational progress as the outcomes of a successful COP28.

H.E. Dr. Al Jaber is Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT), has served as Special Envoy for Climate Change for two terms (2010–2016, 2020–present) and played a proactive participatory role at over ten COPs, including the historic Paris COP21 in 2015. He brings to this task two decades of executive business and leadership experience in government, climate policy and across the renewable and conventional energy sectors.

First CEO to serve as COP President

H.E. Dr. Al Jaber is the first CEO to ever serve as COP President, having played a key role in shaping the country’s clean energy pathway. Throughout his career, he has pioneered a practical and responsible approach to accelerating the energy transition that embraces climate action, energy accessibility, energy security and economic growth.

As the founding CEO of Masdar, he has overseen its mandate to accelerate the adoption of renewables within the UAE, across the region and globally. In his current role as CEO of ADNOC, he is spearheading decarbonising and diversifying the company’s operations and investments in a drive to make today’s energies cleaner, while investing in the clean energies of tomorrow.

As COP28 President-Designate, H.E. Dr. Al Jaber will play a crucial role in leading the intergovernmental process, building consensus and driving ambitious climate outcomes with a broad range of partners, including business and civil society.

Creating an inclusive agenda for COP28

Commenting on his appointment as President-Designate of COP28, H.E. Dr. Al Jaber said: “This will be a critical year in a critical decade for climate action. The UAE is approaching COP28 with a strong sense of responsibility and the highest possible level of ambition. In cooperation with the UNFCCC and the COP27 Presidency, we will champion an inclusive agenda that ramps up action on mitigation, encourages a just energy transition that leaves no one behind, ensures substantial, affordable climate finance is directed to the most vulnerable, accelerates funding for adaptation and builds out a robust funding facility to address loss and damage.”

“In doing so, we will bring a pragmatic, realistic and solutions-oriented approach that delivers transformative progress for climate and for low carbon economic growth. We will therefore take an inclusive approach that engages all stakeholders from the public and private sectors, civil society, scientific community, women, and youth. We must especially focus on how climate action can address the needs of the Global South, as those most impacted by climate change trends,” he added.

Opportunity to invest in sustainable growth

H.E. Dr. Al Jaber said he sincerely believes that climate action today is an immense economic opportunity for investment in sustainable growth.

“Finance is the key that can unlock climate action and we are committed to supporting and facilitating the ongoing review of international financial institutions to scale up public financing, leverage private finance and improve access.

“Pragmatism and constructive dialogue must be at the forefront of our progress. As a nation at the crossroads of the globe, the UAE is well-positioned to build bridges, foster consensus and bring the world together in one shared mission to keep 1.5C alive and protect the planet for the generations who will follow us."

First Global Stocktake since Paris Agreement 

He noted: “COP28 will undertake the first ever Global Stocktake (GST) since the Paris Agreement. The GST will provide the foundation to build momentum for this and future COPs and the UAE will look for an ambitious outcome in response to the GST from the negotiation process. This will be a critical moment to mobilise political will to respond to what the science tells us will need to be achieved to remain on target and limit global warming to 1.5C by 2050.”

Her Excellency Shamma Al Mazrui will serve as the Youth Climate Champion, a new role designed to elevate the global youth voice throughout the COP process and ensure young people’s skills and abilities are prioritized. She is currently the UAE’s Minister of State for Youth Affairs, where she focuses on youth empowerment and capacity development.

H.E. Al Mazrui is also the Vice Chair of the Arab Youth Center, the Secretary General of the Education and Human Resources Council, Chairperson for Special Olympics UAE, and President of the National Center for Education Quality.

Her Excellency Razan Al Mubarak will serve as the UN Climate Change High-Level Champion with the mandate to strengthen engagement and mobilize efforts from non-state actors, including private sector partners, cities and other sub-national governments, indigenous peoples, and civil society. She is currently the President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, leading their campaign to preserve the world’s biodiversity.

The COP28 leadership team will be supported by the entire UAE Government, with Her Excellency Mariam Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, continuing to engage in her critical capacity leading the UAE’s domestic efforts in addressing climate change, preserving the environment and food systems transformation.

The appointment of this diverse leadership team for COP28 UAE comes at a pivotal moment, as the world faces increasing climate impact, challenges to energy security, food and water security and reversing biodiversity loss.