Egypt's Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, met with Mexican Ambassador to Cairo, Leonora Rueda Gutierrez, to explore opportunities for bilateral and multilateral cooperation on key environmental issues, including desertification, climate change, and waste management, the ministry announced in a statement on Sunday. The meeting, attended by Ambassador Raouf Saad, Advisor for Multilateral Agreements, and a representative from the Foreign Ministry, began with Ambassador Rueda congratulating Fouad on her recent appointment as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Rueda expressed Mexico's confidence in Fouad's leadership, noting her extensive environmental expertise and the shared conditions between Egypt, Mexico, and other developing countries. Fouad highlighted the longstanding environmental collaboration between the two nations, particularly since Egypt assumed the presidency of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) from Mexico in 2018. She pointed to ongoing joint efforts in advancing the green transition and promoting circular economy initiatives. The minister also noted the global initiative launched by President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi during COP14 to integrate the Rio Conventions on climate change, biodiversity, and desertification. She stressed that these interconnected challenges have a direct impact on food security, especially in Africa. Amid increasing global instability, food insecurity, and intensifying climate impacts, Fouad described desertification as one of the most pressing environmental threats. She underscored that 2026 will be a pivotal year, as all three Rio Conventions will convene their conferences, creating a unique opportunity to mobilise political will, international solidarity, and financial resources. Fouad outlined Egypt's achievements in applying nature-based solutions to address climate change impacts along its coastlines. These solutions, she explained, offer cost-effective and integrated approaches that simultaneously support climate adaptation, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable land use — a model particularly suited to countries with limited resources. At the bilateral level, Fouad discussed Egypt's integrated waste management system, established through the first national waste management law in 2020. The system embraces circular economy principles and shifts operational responsibility from the state to the private sector. Since its introduction, Egypt has invested in supporting infrastructure and launched successful partnerships with private sector stakeholders, she added. For her part, Ambassador Rueda expressed Mexico's interest in benefiting from Egypt's experience in transforming environmental challenges into economic opportunities. She highlighted shared concerns, including the impacts of desertification and flash floods on agriculture. Mexico, she noted, is currently working to modernise traditional farming practices and develop educational programmes focused on biodiversity and sustainability — areas where closer cooperation with Egypt could bring significant value.
