H.E. Vice Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Eng. Mansour Almushaiti, confirmed that the Kingdom celebrates this year World Environment Day, which takes place every year on June 5, by sharing awareness messages urging society to protect the environment and shed light on the damage caused to the planet due to climate change.
Almushaiti said that this year's celebration which comes under the slogan "Generations of Restoration", aims to restore and protect ecosystems through a campaign that will be held from 2021 to 2030, with the participation of individuals, communities, governments, companies and organizations to work together at the global level to address ecological degradation, reduce its harmful effects and secure future livelihoods.
He indicated that the ministry is working to monitor all environmental issues, raise awareness on environmental issues, and the need to preserve more than 8 million species of plants and animals on Earth, ecosystems and genetic diversity.
"The Ministry has pioneered efforts to limit the ecosystem degradation, restore ecosystems and adapt to climate change, including implementing the national parks development initiative, launching 17 initiatives to protect the environment and improving meteorology and services provided within the National Transformation Program 2020," he said. Adding that the work is underway to establish a climate change center, in addition to stopping the cultivation of crops that require vast amounts of water and using water-saving eco-friendly technologies, launching 64 initiatives within the National Environment Strategy.
These initiatives include adapting to climate changes, adopting national strategies for natural pastures, forests and wildlife, combating desertification, and adopting royal reserves that contributed to increasing the proportion of protected areas to reach 16% and developing national plans to confront natural disasters. World Environment Day is a global platform for raising awareness on the importance of protecting the environment and its resources, reducing global warming and desertification.