DOHA: The 44th GCC environmental meeting for undersecretaries kicked off on Monday in the Qatari capital, Doha, with Kuwait’s participation. In his speech, Qatari Undersecretary of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Abdulaziz Al-Mahmoud said that based on previous preparatory meetings, the results encourage continued efforts to attain environmental visions.

He praised GCC’s efforts to unify positions within upcoming international events, including multilateral environmental agreements, especially the fifth session of the intergovernmental negotiating committee to establish a legally binding international treaty on plastic pollution and the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29).

He congratulated Saudi Arabia for hosting the 16th Conference of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the largest of its kind and the first in the Middle East region, stressing readiness to contribute to the technical preparations for the conference, which will inevitably reflect on the interests of GCC countries and the Arab region in general.

The Kuwaiti delegation participating in the meeting is headed by Acting Director General of the Environment Public Authority, Samira Al-Kandari. Al-Kandari, stressed on Monday the importance of the 44th meeting. Al-Kandari told KUNA that “such meetings contribute to advancing joint Gulf action and supporting its good path towards integration and solidarity among our countries, in addition to reviewing the achievements and results achieved in the Gulf environmental field.

She pointed out that the meeting discussed the strategic plan of the Committee of Ministers Responsible for Environmental Affairs, the efforts of the Ozone working groups, the Gulf Environmental Portal, and the agreement to preserve wildlife and its natural habitats in the GCC countries, in addition to discussing the establishment of a unified Gulf center for environmental and climate studies and preparing a Gulf environmental index. Al-Kandari expressed her appreciation to the General Secretary of the Gulf Cooperation Council. — KUNA