She also announced a high-level ministerial meeting on mangroves during COP28, which will bring together mangrove host governments and various partners, as well as civil society organizations, charities, financial institutions, as well as the scientific community, to work to scale mangroves and accelerate their restoration in nature and preserve their ecosystems.

This came during the participation of Mariam bint Mohammed Al Muhairi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, in Climate Week in New York City.

Crimean Development Initiative

Mangrove Breakthrough, a collaborative effort between the Global Mangrove Alliance and the United Nations High-Level Climate Change Champions, aims to restore and protect 15 million hectares of mangroves globally by 2030. Today, the world has 14 million hectares of mangroves remaining, half of its original area.

The main objectives of the initiative are to halt mangrove losses, restore half of the currently lost mangroves, double their global protection, and call for an investment of US$4 billion by 2030 to conserve and expand mangrove ecosystems.

The Mangrove Breakthrough initiative is an integral part of the Sharm el-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda, which seeks to accelerate efforts and strengthen the resilience of developing communities around the world. The initiative is in line with the Race to Resilience goal of making 4 billion people – nearly half of the world's population – more resilient by 2030.

Demonstrating the UAE's support for the Mangrove Breakthrough initiative, Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, said: "The initiative represents an important step towards reducing carbon emissions and preserving nature on our planet. The UAE recognizes the paramount importance of mangroves in combating climate change and supporting our coastal communities, and we look forward to helping bring about real change on the ground. I call on all countries of the world to support this unique initiative."

Al Muhairi announced the organization of the Mangrove Ministerial Meeting to be held on December 9 during the "Nature, Oceans and Land Use Day" at COP28, and invited all partners to be part of the event, Her Excellency said: "The Mangrove Ministerial Meeting aims to shape a strong path to the development of nature-based solutions and fundamentally change our collective efforts to combat climate change, and will focus on accelerating financing, policy and technology to achieve the Mangrove Breakthrough goals of restoring and protecting 15 million people. hectares of mangroves by 2030, as well as stopping their destruction."

"We hope to see substantial announcements based on a action-based plan to achieve these goals. Let us move forward with actions and commitments during the global mobilization at COP28, to continue to raise awareness about the great nexus between nature and climate." The "Nature, Oceans and Land Use Day", held in collaboration between the Crimean Climate Alliance, the World Mangrove Alliance, the United Nations High-Level Champions (Crimean Goal Initiative Supervisors) and the COP28 Presidency, reflects the UAE's commitment at COP15 to the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity in Montreal last December.

Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, UN Climate Leader at COP28, said: "Mangroves are the power of natural systems that enhance our climate efforts while providing co-benefits for people, nature and biodiversity. As coastal ecosystems are already suffering from the effects of climate change, we urgently need to intensify work to conserve, restore and protect mangroves. COP28 will provide a valuable opportunity to advance the objectives of the Mangrove Forest Restoration initiative and put nature at the top of the climate agenda.

Continuous support for the environment

The UAE's support for mangrove ecosystems is remarkable, including its national target of planting 100 million mangroves by 2030. The country has also established partnerships with international organizations, non-governmental organizations and other countries to exchange best practices, conduct joint research and implement marine conservation projects.

The UAE also launched the Crimean Climate Alliance (MAC) in partnership with Indonesia to promote mangroves as a nature-based solution to climate change.

It has attracted 20 partners to scale up and accelerate the conservation and restoration of mangrove ecosystems for the benefit of communities around the world. The alliance seeks to raise awareness about the role of mangroves as a nature-based solution to climate change, and through its members works to expand and rehabilitate these trees globally. They are highly efficient carbon stores, which, according to the United Nations, can store about 1000,<> tons of carbon per hectare in their biomass and basic soil.

Mangroves also play a critical role in enhancing coastal resilience and nurturing biodiversity. Mangroves cover about 0.1 percent of the planet's surface, but can store up to ten times the carbon stored per hectare of wild forest, according to the Crimean Climate Alliance (MAC), and these key benefits will be in the spotlight at COP28, as the UAE aims to leverage the power of international cooperation in accelerating progress in mangrove conservation and restoration of mangrove populations lost in nature.