Singaporean Minister welcomes partnership with Qatar in field of climate change

(MENAFN - The Peninsula) Doha: Doha Forum, in cooperation with the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore, held a webinar on climate change, in which many personalities from Asia and the United States took part. In her opening speech to the conference moderated by HE President of the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore Bilahari Kausikan, HE Minister of Sustainability and Environment of Singapore Grace Fu, said that Singapore is fully aware of its weaknesses and is serious about dealing with climate change, and earlier this year the Parliament of Singapore approved the proposal that recognizes that climate change constitutes a global emergency and threatens humanity, and reaffirmed its commitment to making deeper efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, in partnership with the private sector, civil society and individuals. Her Excellency explained that the innovative solutions that Singapore provide may be related to other countries or cities facing similar challenges, including those in the Middle East, but climate change is ultimately a global challenge that countries such as Singapore and Qatar cannot solve alone. Her Excellency focused in her speech on the potential partnership areas between Singapore and the State of Qatar. Her Excellency added that as Singapore continues its march towards a more sustainable future, it welcomes opportunities to partner with the State of Qatar and other countries in the Middle East to collectively address climate change, and although circumstances may differ, both countries face many of the same challenges, including sea level rise high temperatures, and threats to water and food security, pointing out that Singapore aims to develop itself as a center for carbon trade and services, and as a leading center for green finance to facilitate the transition in Asia. Her Excellency Grace Fu also indicated that as Qatar Investment Authority is a founding member of the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Funds initiative, which integrates climate change into the financial decision-making process, it will promote green finance as it explores opportunities in Asia. The session included interventions of HE the former Presidential Envoy on Climate Change in Indonesia Rachmat Witoelar, HE Former Ambassador to the United States and Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in Vietnam Pham Quang Vinh; HE Senior Writer and Editor-in-Chief of the Nikkei Japanese newspaper Kiyoshi Ando; and HE Permanent Secretary at Singapore's Ministry of Sustainability and Environment Albert Chua. The Doha Forum is a global platform for dialogue, bringing together policy leaders to build innovative and stimulating networks of action. (QNA)  MENAFN27052021000063011010ID1102150481