The
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Islamic Development
Bank (IDB) agreed on wide-ranging cooperation on environmental
conservation in support of sustainable development and the fight against
climate change. UNEP Deputy Executive Director, Mr Ibrahim Thiaw and
the IDB President, Dr Ahmad Mohammad Ali Al Madani signed the agreement
in Jeddah, where the bank is headquartered.
The Memorandum of
Understanding, set to run until June 2018 initially, covers objectives
common to the two organizations in the areas of climate change,
agriculture and food security, eco-innovation and green economy, and
Islamic finance. Capacity building in member countries in all these
thematic areas will be supported. The overarching goal is to facilitate
the implementation of both the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
and the Paris Agreement on climate change. Mr Thiaw, who also delivered a
keynote speech on opportunities presented by the Paris Agreement, said,
"The Islamic Development bank is increasingly redirecting the power
of its finance to green investments, and UNEP looks forward to joining
forces with this key player to drive the transition to a sustainable
future." The IDB is set to increase its financial support to
Sustainable Development Goals realization to more than USD 150 billion
over the coming years. The bank is already a major player in the clean
energy sector, with investments of around USD 1 billion between 2010 and
2012.
The agreement also aims to encourage broader involvement of
the international financial sector in sustainable development, which
will be crucial to finance the investments required to promote a green
future.