Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, has said that the UAE has marked a historic achievement with “The UAE Consensus” that not only highlights a paradigm shift in climate action, but also charts a new course to our North Star – to keep 1.5 within reach.

Almheiri added, “We thank President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for his guidance and continuous support to making this a historic and milestone COP that will benefit all of humanity, underpinned by its spirit of action, multilateralism, inclusivity, and solidarity. We have united, acted, and delivered to bring hope and optimism to all of humanity.

She also expressed her thanks to H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Higher Committee responsible for the preparations to host the COP28, for his leadership and guidance, and for the strong bridges of cooperation fostered by the UAE with global nations.

This, she said, played a strong role in securing global consensus for the 11 UAE COP28 Declarations, many being historic-firsts, in addition to several unprecedented achievements the Presidency achieved.

“At the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, our mandate was to drive nation-wide action in the lead up to COP28, and to mobilise all stakeholders. Over the course of the year, we have raised ambition and built momentum towards the very goals that the UAE Consensus has achieved,” the minister added.

She went on to say “The Green Retreat we launched to mobilise the partnership of all ministries to drive climate action was one of the first successful steps. From the roll out of our Net Zero 2050 Strategy to submitting the Third Update to the Second Nationally Determined Contribution – the third by the UAE in less than three years – and presenting the National Adaptation Plan, we rallied all stakeholders, listening to them and integrating their feedback, for tangible action – to cut emissions and activate all pathways towards a cleaner future.

“We thank all the government ministries, the business sector, civil society, philanthropists, women groups, youth, children, academia, media and the community, for their support in helping our nation achieve this milestone COP.

“We are extremely honoured that the Changemakers Majlis that we hosted prior to and during COP28 played a significant role in driving dialogue by reconnecting the delegates with the spirit of collaboration. We have delivered on our promise to the nation and the people.

“As COP28 Food Systems Lead, it gives me personal honour that COP28 placed food, agriculture, and water at the heart of its discussions, with 159 nations – representing 80 percent of all the countries in the world - endorsing the UAE COP 28 Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems and Climate Action. These countries have a population of over 6.2 billion people, with 530 million farmers, and account for 77 percent of all the food we eat as well as 83 percent of all emissions from food systems.

“Through the two weeks, the Ministry focused on elevating discussions on food and agriculture systems, water, and nature-based solutions, including the first-ever COP ministerial dialogue on building water-resilient food systems. We also achieved breakthrough results. These included more than US$3.1 billion mobilised during COP28 for climate positive action in the food system sector, and major announcements such as launch of a two-year work partnership to COP30 by the UAE and Brazil.

“I congratulate Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and COP28 President, for galvanising global support for the UAE Consensus, which marks several world-firsts – including the global goal to triple renewables and double energy efficiency, and for the first time, an agreement to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner, accelerating action in this critical decade, to achieve net zero by 2050.

“We will continue to build on the momentum achieved at COP28 because we believe in action and implementation to ensure that the UAE Consensus marks a real turning point for humanity and for our future generations.”