By Nayrouz Talaat: CAIRO, September 25, 2018 - The EU is providing 700m euro to finance climate change-related projects in Egypt, head of the EU Delegation to Egypt, Ambassador Ivan Surkoš said Tuesday. The ambassador was speaking at the opening conference of the "Climate Diplomacy Week", which is being held in co-operation with the Ministry of the Environment and is also being attended by the Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad. "Climate Diplomacy Week" is a global initiative launched by the EU, from September 24 to 30, aimed at raising awareness of climate change issues. The EU has co-founded the largest single wind-farm in Africa in the Gulf of El-Zayt, in Egypt, on a grant of 30 million euros. The farm provides clean energy to Egypt and reduces carbon emissions by 400 tonnes annually, according to the EU ambassador. During the "Climate Diplomacy Week", the EU will be targetting young people this year to promote environmental awareness among them through a series of climate-related events. Last week, the first event, organised by the EU, was the Beach Clean-Up in Alexandria, to mark World Clean-up Day. "We also work with governorates in Egypt on the sustainable protection of the environment through solid waste management programmes," said Surkoš. Minister of the Environment Yasmine Fouad said that the country was currently focusing on raising the awareness of children about environmental hazards. Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli has announced in an official statement, that there was co-operation between the ministries of the environment and housing, on reducing the black cloud phenomenon in Egypt. "The percentage of rice straw collected from the Delta governorates has increased to 21 per cent from 15 per cent year-on-year and this will help fight the black cloud phenomenon," Madbouli said. "Climate change is a new challenge for all of us. We need to modify and adapt the way we produce and consume our resources, making it more sustainable and resilient," said Ambassador Surkoš. "Climate change and biodiversity loss can be observed every day. Desertification, increased natural disasters, sea levels rising, this affects each one of us and mostly the more vulnerable people," he added. Surkoš referred to the Paris Agreement and said it was an essential step on the road to a more sustainable and resilient future. "Together with the global 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, it has the potential significantly to accelerate the economic and social transformation that we need to preserve our common future and the future of our planet," he added. The EU and its member states are the world's biggest climate finance donors and have provided, together with the European Investment Bank, a total of 20.2 billion euros in 2016 to support climate action in partner countries, according to the ambassador.
