Hundreds of millions of US dollars in sustainability-related strategic business deals and partnerships were struck across clean energy, water, and waste at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2016, organizers said.

Major partnerships included a collaboration between Abu Dhabi’s Masdar, a planned sustainable development and the Sharjah-based environmental company Bee’ah to develop the UAE’s first waste-to-energy plant, and an agreement between ABB and Marifer on solar power plants in Jordan.

Japanese firm Hioki launched the world’s first non-metallic voltage meter, which will be used in large-scale utility projects such as a 200 megawatt solar photovoltaic power plant to be built by Masdar in Jordan. The Global Clean Water Desalination Alliance also hosted its first meeting since launching at COP 21 Paris in 2015.

“In addition to realizing major business transactions, ADSW also achieved significant progress in raising community awareness of the importance of sustainability, energy efficiency, and of embracing more environmentally responsible behaviour in our everyday lives,” said Dr Nawal Al Hosany, director of Sustainability, Masdar.

The World Future Energy Summit (WFES), International Water Summit (IWS), in partnership with ADWEA, and EcoWaste, in partnership with Tadweer, the Center for Waste Management in Abu Dhabi welcomed a record 33,000 attendees, including over 80 government ministers, and 650 exhibiting companies from over 40 countries, including from Egypt, India, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Morocco.

Driving business deals, the tailored networking platform Sustainability Business Connect hosted a record of more than 6,000 business meetings.

“As the world’s first major sustainability event since COP 21, Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week’s record deals and partnerships reflects the strong optimism among governments, businesses, and financiers in the region’s Smart Cities, solar rooftops, and desalination plants. We’re set to take sustainability to the next level at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2017, which will be the largest and most expansive ever,” said Naji El Haddad, Group event director, WFES, IWS, and EcoWaste.

Organizers also saw strong attendance at new show features such as the Egypt Energy Forum, Future Cities Forum, Sustainable Transport, Solar Expo, Energy Efficiency TechTalk, Innovate@IWS, EcoWaste’s Mena Municipalities Roundtable. WFES also announced the launch of the Energy Efficiency Expo for the 2017 edition.

ADSW saw an unprecedented level of youth engagement, with an estimated 9,000 students taking part. The Student Exclusive conference, the event’s flagship youth activity, hosted a half-day program starring global rap music celebrity AKON.

Female empowerment was also a key topic at ADSW 2016, which staged its first full-day conference dedicated to the Women in Sustainability, Environment & Renewable Energy (WiSER) initiative founded by Masdar and the Zayed Future Energy Prize. – TradeArabia News Service