MENA needs to pivot towards sustainability during 2023.

MENA is at serious risk from the effects of the changing climate – warming at twice the global average. There is a strong case for climate action that will help MENA’s populations and businesses adapt to the growing climate realities and prepare for future shocks. MENA is hosting consecutive COP summits, offering the region a rare chance to find a collective voice on the climate issue. The Gulf States are enjoying a cumulative oil windfall, offering an opportunity to start making the economic model more sustainable. With funds and a focus on climate change, 2023 should be the year when Gulf States work on strategy with their regional counterparts to chart MENA’s course towards net zero. With the region hosting consecutive COP summits, the climate change discourse remains with the Middle East, offering the region a rare chance to find a collective voice on this issue. To support this, the Forum is convening a group called Leaders for a Sustainable MENA, which will be tasked with jointly identifying the most efficient routes to decarbonization and reducing the gap with other regions in terms of corporate sustainability practices. This is important because MENA is at serious risk from the effects of the changing climate, in large part because it is warming at twice the global average