The Ministry of Environment is preparing to officially announce the National Climate Change Adaptation Plan next year in a move that aims to identify the country's needs and priorities in the coming years, as well as provide a comprehensive vision of the current environmental reality and identify the gaps and challenges facing the sectors most affected by climate phenomena.
"The plan represents one of the international obligations that Iraq is committed to preparing and implementing under its accession to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement," said Najla Mohsen al-Waeli, director of the ministry's technical department, "It will contribute to identifying programs and projects that need international support and estimating the amount of financial and technical funding required to raise the adaptive capacity of national sectors."
"Work on the preparation of the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) began in July 2020, but the coronavirus pandemic and the accompanying global repercussions, as well as the financial challenges faced by concerned international organizations, caused delays in some stages of its completion," she explained.
"The plan includes a study of 13 key sectors that are among the most sensitive and affected by climate change, including agriculture, food security, water resources, health, natural systems, forests and human settlements, as well as climate risks and disasters, including sea level rise, sanitation, tourism, world heritage, transportation, renewable energy, governance, education, vulnerable groups and gender," Al-Waeli said.
"The ministry's technical department was keen to involve all ministries and stakeholders in the preparation process, as more than 23 government agencies participated, along with civil society organizations, women's organizations, local communities and representatives of the governorates.
"The participation of women in the ministerial team tasked with preparing the plan amounted to about 40 percent, which confirms the ministry's commitment to representing all active groups and not overlooking any influential segment in the upcoming stages of preparation and implementation," Al-Waeli added.
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