The transformation to a green economy needs fundamental cooperation of both the private and public-sector leaderships, and this responsibility will be highlighted at the upcoming World Green Economy Summit (WGES 2018) in Dubai.

The event will take place on October 24 and 25 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

WGES will encourage political and corporate leaders to exchange views on how to best use their authority to engage society in the green economy, by introducing progressive policies and incentives, changing individual behaviour and consumption patterns, or raising environmental awareness, said a statement from the organisers.

More than 8,000 participating companies and 4,000 non-business participants have already embraced the commitments of the UN Global Compact as they committed voluntarily to manage their operations in a responsible manner and to integrate sustainability in their strategies, it said.

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, vice chairman of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and chairman of WGES, said: “The UAE has pioneered in setting an ideal model for public-private partnerships through the development of legislations, which enhanced investment opportunities in infrastructure projects and improved quality of services.”

“This model has contributed in increasing the collaboration between government and private sectors. In addition, Dubai has developed a strong regulatory framework via Regulatory & Supervisory Bureau (RSB) for Electricity & Water to encourage private investment through Independent Power Producer (IPP) model,” he said.

“Thanks to this model, Dubai has achieved the lowest prices for electricity generation through solar energy in the world,” he added.

Al Tayer continued: “We acknowledge the role of the private and public-sector in sustainable development. And as we move closer to a resource-efficient economy, it is important that leaderships from both the sectors contribute positively to boost investments in research and development and innovation and technology.”

“The event aims to set goals for private-public sector leaderships that will allow them to undertake sustainable initiatives in pursuit of a green economy,” he added.

Featuring discussions on capacity building, technology transfer and green investments, WGES will facilitate dialogue between governments and businesses to take forward the sustainability agenda.

Al Tayer said: “Green growth is the best approach for sustainable development. It is the key that can unlock the well-being for the current and future generations. As such, fostering engagement between government and business leaders will accelerate the green growth.”

“The summit aims to tap this collaboration to facilitate exchange of information and best practices, as well as drive steadfast commitment of the leaders to positively influence the environment and society,” he added.

The summit is organised by Dewa and the World Green Economy Organisation (WGEO) in collaboration with international partners under the theme ‘Driving Innovation, Leading Change’, said a statement.

WGES 2018 will focus on three main pillars, green capital, digital transformation, and leadership and social engagement. The event will gather financial executives, investment professionals, and thought leaders to discuss ways to increase green capital flows into regional and global environment-friendly projects and how to de-risk those investments, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service