PARIS // Ahead of the 21st session of Conference of Parties in Paris later this month, the UAE has pledged to generate 24 per cent of its electricity from clean energy sources by 202​1, as part of its outline for legally binding actions to be taken to protect the environment.

Submitted in Paris by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the outline, also known as the Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) is a document stating, at the meeting, which environmental goals the UAE would seek to achieve and for the next five years.

The conference, or COP21, is being called the most important climate negotiation since the Kyoto Protocol because 190 countries will be taking part to agree to state-based and binding laws to help protect the environment.

INDC’s have been submitted by almost 160 other participating countries in the meeting today, which concludes a three-part ministerial meeting between the governments of the nations ahead of the event.

“The UAE is prepared to work with other nations to combat climate change,” Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, director of energy and climate change at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We firmly believe that through global partnership and domestic policy we can overcome climate challenges and turn them into opportunities to build a more diversified and sustainable economy,” he said.

Dr Al Zeyoudi, also the UAE’s permanent representative to the International Renewable Energy Agency, said that the plan reinforces the country’s commitment to “green growth”.

In the action plan, the government said although the UAE has depended heavily on hydrocarbons to drive economic development over the past 40 years, the future depends on investing in clean energy.

To that end, clean energy now provides 0.2 per cent of the country’s energy mix. The government is looking at ways to boost that to 24 per cent by 2021.

The document also discusses ways to reduce reliance on vehicles and more on public transport. It mentions making 25 per cent of government vehicle fleets run on compressed natural gas.

“The UAE is fully committed to the negotiation process and to achieving a legally binding climate agreement applicable to all parties,” Dr Al Zeyoudi said. “We expect a successful COP21 that will help move the world forward toward our collective goal of a sustainable future.”

The ministerial consultations were led by Manuel Pulgar Vidal, Peruvian minister of environment and Laurent Fabius, French foreign minister.

The conference takes place between November 30 and December 11.

nalwasmi@thenational.ae