August 12, 2020; SEOUL, Republic of Korea / DOHA, State of Qatar – On August 12, the State of Qatar and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) signed a Host Country Agreement (HCA) to officially open a country office in Doha and strengthen mutual cooperation. Due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols, the signing ceremony took place virtually, with in-person presence of representatives at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of State of Qatar (MoFA Qatar) in Doha and GGGI headquarters in Seoul. On behalf of the MoFA Qatar, His Excellency Secretary General Dr. Ahmad Hassen Al-Hammadi signed the HCA along with Director-General of GGGI Dr. Frank Rijsberman. They were joined by His Excellency Mohammed bin Ahmad Al-Hayki, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Korea, and Amb. Hyoeun Jenny Kim, Deputy Director-General of GGGI.
In 2012, Qatar was one of the first sixteen member countries of GGGI that signed the Establishment Agreement to form GGGI as an intergovernmental organization with a mandate to support green growth and sustainable development in emerging and developing economies. Starting 2019, GGGI and the Qatari Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME Qatar) launched a cooperation program around activities to promote environmental balance in Qatar in light of the unprecedented urban, economic and social progress, achieved by the country in the past decades.
His Excellency Secretary General Dr. Al-Hammadi congratulated GGGI for its expansion in Qatar and stated that “The HCA marks the State of Qatar’s commitment to continued cooperation with GGGI to promote Environmental Development which is a key pillar of the Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV2030). Qatar already has many initiatives to support climate action and environmental sustainability, and we look forward to furthering collaboration in this area that supports the QNV2030 goals.” Achieved with the support of the MoFA Qatar and other key ministries, the HCA marks a key milestone to scale up the cooperation program between the State of Qatar and GGGI.
GGGI’s mission in Qatar is currently focused on climate change adaptation and green growth planning and implementation to support economic diversification and environmental development as stipulated in the QNV2030. “With its efficient governance system and successful handling of the pandemic, Qatar is well-positioned to achieve further prosperity and the QNV2030 goals. GGGI stands ready to support its endeavor to utilize environmental sustainability approaches by bringing the Institute’s rich international experience and network in this regard”, shared GGGI Director-General Dr. Frank Rijsberman. “Now, with the HCA in place, we look forward to the strengthened partnership to support Qatar in areas that include national climate change planning and implementation.”
As part of the cooperation program, GGGI has already conducted a series of capacity development, stakeholder consultation and assessment activities, related to climate change and green growth planning in Qatar in cooperation with the MME Qatar and key national stakeholders. These included the development of a roadmap to implement a national Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) system to meet the climate change information reporting requirements of the UNFCCC, as well as conducting an assessment to prioritize green economy approaches that could contribute to Qatar’s economic diversification objectives.
GGGI’s Qatar Country Representative (oic), Dr. Pranab Baruah noted that “This is an important milestone for GGGI in Qatar, and we sincerely thank the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Municipality and Environment, as well as, other stakeholders in the country for their strong support to achieve this Agreement. GGGI looks forward to the continued collaboration with official and concerned stakeholders and will endeavor to support the State of Qatar in promoting sustainable development and environmental sustainability in line with the United Nations Agenda 2030.”