Sep 29, 2022

Wednesday 9-28-2022 Misr El Kheir Foundation today organized a panel discussion on the report on the contributions of civil society organizations in confronting climate change, including a plan for the work of civil society organizations and civil society organizations in confronting climate change during the next phase, in the presence of a number of officials from the Ministry of Planning and Environment, in addition to a number of international experts and officials of the organization, at the Foundation’s headquarters in Mokattam. Through this table, the Misr El Kheir Foundation aims to produce a report that is the first of its kind regarding the role of civil society organizations in climate action, and what it can provide in the coming period in coordination with the state and the private sector in this context, calling on the concerned authorities to adopt this report, view it, and listen to it, in addition to considering the recommendations that come out of it. Dr. Iqbal Al-Samalouti, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation, said that the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation adopts a solid scientific methodology to activate the role of civil society, and not just to activate the role of Misr Al-Kheir. The Foundation interacts with thousands of associations in Egypt, stressing the importance of activating the various partnerships between civil society associations and other sectors such as the private sector, in the field of confronting climate change, and in other fields as well, so that the results will be impressive. Al-Samalouti added that the Foundation has prepared many discussions, practical workshops, and seminars, in addition to collecting various opinions and recommendations from all civil society organizations, civil society associations, international experts, specialists, and people of experience in relevant government institutions to come up with a report and an executive plan for civil society’s work in confronting climate change, in order to convince the political decision-maker in Egypt of this plan, and adopt its implementation on the ground, so that there is a specific policy paper that is convincing for all parties concerned with sustainable development in Egypt. Al-Samalouti continued that there are many actual practices of civil work in the field of confronting climate change and preserving the environment, and there are international partnerships that welcome work with civil society in this direction, to serve development, and then the matter needs the support of decision makers. Al-Samalouti pointed out that the Foundation has been launching awards for four years to support civil society organizations in the field of charitable and development work, under the title “Charitable Giving Award for Charitable and Development Work,” and it launched it the first year in The field of education, then poverty, then health, then the fourth prize for climate change, coinciding with the 27th session of the Conference of States Parties to the United Nations Climate Summit COP27, which is being held in the city of Sharm El-Sheikh at the end of this year, pointing out that the Foundation has raised the awareness of at least 5,500 local NGOs, by the work team of the NGO Development Sector, in the field of climate change. For her part, Dr. Sahar Al-Bahaei, Director of the Center for Planning and Environmental Development at the National Planning Institute, said that the Institute prepared a report on the role of Egyptian NGOs in climate action with the aim of identifying the expected effects of climate change at the global and local levels, and then the role of the state, the role of civil society organizations, and the proposals expected to be presented, noting that the report presents possible expectations for climate changes at the local level, in addition to presenting the international vision of the Egyptian efforts in the climate change file, and the national efforts made by the state to confront the changes. climatic. Al-Baha’i added that the world is facing difficult effects of climate change, as there will be a rise in temperatures from one to two degrees in 2059, and 3 degrees by the end of the century, and 25% of cities will be submerged by 2100, in addition to the erosion of 14% of beaches worldwide, increased desertification, and other harmful effects. Al-Bahaei added that Egypt began early to confront the harmful effects of climate change, and is seeking through many current steps to mitigate the severity of climate impacts and adapt to climate changes, as Egypt plans for 50% of projects to be environmentally friendly in 2025, and has issued $750 million in bonds in the green economy, and so far there are 437,000 cars that have been converted to run on natural gas, and there are 850 natural gas stations, and 99% of it is straw and rice waste. They are collected and compressed, and then the major crisis caused by burning rice straw is eliminated. Regarding civil associations, Al-Baha’i said that the number of civil associations working to confront climate change reached 244 associations, while the volume of investments made by civil associations in this field amounted to 3 billion and 290 million investments. 59% of the projects are projects to mitigate the effects of climate change, and 29% of them are projects to adapt to the environment, and the remaining percentage combines the two fields. Mohamed Mamdouh, Head of the NGO Development Sector at the Misr El Kheir Foundation, said that this table is the second table that takes place within the framework of activating the activities of the “Sustainable Climate” campaign launched by the sector in conjunction with the interest of the Egyptian state and civil society organizations concerned with environmental issues in preparing for Egypt to host the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27), which is scheduled to be held in November 2022 in the city of Sharm El-Sheikh. The campaign aims to educate civil society workers about the dangers of climate change, and Their role in mitigating and adapting to these changes. Mamdouh stressed that this campaign comes from Misr El Kheir Foundation’s belief that the civil sector is one of the sides of the triangle of the sustainable development process in partnership with the government sector and the private sector, and that civil organizations have many experts and cadres in various fields through which they can support the state in advancing and improving society. Dr. Hussein Abaza, the international advisor in the field of international economics, said that it is necessary to link the various strategies of the state to produce the expected results, and one of the most important strategies is to. The link between them is the link between the state’s strategy to confront the impact of climate change, and Egypt’s vision for sustainable development 2030, in addition to coordination between state agencies, the private sector, and civil society in this direction. Abaza explained that the role of civil society organizations in this story is pivotal, as they work to link dealing with climate change and combating poverty, and they can play a major role in this regard, as they have the ability to communicate with small local communities. Such an initiative will help develop the capabilities of civil society organizations, stressing the need for coordination at the international level with international organizations. It is worth noting that the report is one of the outcomes of the regional campaign to raise awareness among Arab NGOs about climate issues (sustainable climate), sponsored and in partnership with many local and international bodies, the Ministry of Social Solidarity, the Ministry of Environment, the “Go Green” presidential initiative, the National Planning Institute, Beni Suef University, the National Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development, the Arab Network for NGOs, the General Union of Associations, UNDP) #Sustainable_climate_campaign #Sustainable_national_work