308 M. LUOMI
Alignment, Drivers and Future Prospects
The UAE has sought to be seen as a regional leader in climate action
since the early 2010s through hosting IRENA and a number of highprofile climate change-related events, including the annual Abu Dhabi
Sustainability Week and preparatory meetings for the UN SecretaryGeneral’s Climate Summits in 2014 and 2019. This objective remains
an important policy driver, alongside being seen as a good global citizen
through exerting ‘active global responsibility’—an objective enshrined
in the UAE Foreign Ministry’s strategy. 23 The UAE’s top leadership is
fully supportive of these objectives and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi,
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, in particular has been perceived as the
driving force behind the UAE’s decision to place sustainable energy and
climate policy as key elements in the country’s economic policy.
Two policy misalignments are, however, observable in this regard:
first, there is a disconnect between the UAE’s rhetoric outside the
UNFCCC and its positions within the UNFCCC, where its positions
are not well-defined. In non-UNFCCC fora, the UAE often applies
an opportunities-oriented rhetoric. On the eve of the 2019 Climate
Summit preparatory meeting, the UAE’s Climate Change and Environment Minister announced ‘a green and clean future is good for the
economy… in the UAE, we have proven that climate action leads to
more jobs, more growth, and more resilience and prosperity’. 24 At the
same time, when the positions of the Arab Group in the UNFCCC negotiations seem to be out of line with that of a country seeking to be a role
model and voice for ambitious climate change policy in the Gulf and Arab
region, the UAE often acquiesces.
As for domestic policy, despite the fact that the UAE has conducted
significant policy work and is taking action to reduce emissions and
resilience in ways that go beyond those described in this chapter, the
overall levels of policy ambition and implementation are still relatively
modest and should be significantly accelerated in the coming years.
Based on this track record, the UAE deserves its self-promoted title
of a leader in climate change policy in the Gulf region. Much, however,
still remains to be done. The policies currently in place, if implemented,
will only result in incremental change, which does not meet the scale
of the challenge for a country that still receives a third of its GDP
and two-thirds of government revenue from oil. First, there are no
emissions-related/renewable energy targets that go beyond the power
Alignment, Drivers and Future Prospects
The UAE has sought to be seen as a regional leader in climate action
since the early 2010s through hosting IRENA and a number of highprofile climate change-related events, including the annual Abu Dhabi
Sustainability Week and preparatory meetings for the UN SecretaryGeneral’s Climate Summits in 2014 and 2019. This objective remains
an important policy driver, alongside being seen as a good global citizen
through exerting ‘active global responsibility’—an objective enshrined
in the UAE Foreign Ministry’s strategy. 23 The UAE’s top leadership is
fully supportive of these objectives and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi,
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, in particular has been perceived as the
driving force behind the UAE’s decision to place sustainable energy and
climate policy as key elements in the country’s economic policy.
Two policy misalignments are, however, observable in this regard:
first, there is a disconnect between the UAE’s rhetoric outside the
UNFCCC and its positions within the UNFCCC, where its positions
are not well-defined. In non-UNFCCC fora, the UAE often applies
an opportunities-oriented rhetoric. On the eve of the 2019 Climate
Summit preparatory meeting, the UAE’s Climate Change and Environment Minister announced ‘a green and clean future is good for the
economy… in the UAE, we have proven that climate action leads to
more jobs, more growth, and more resilience and prosperity’. 24 At the
same time, when the positions of the Arab Group in the UNFCCC negotiations seem to be out of line with that of a country seeking to be a role
model and voice for ambitious climate change policy in the Gulf and Arab
region, the UAE often acquiesces.
As for domestic policy, despite the fact that the UAE has conducted
significant policy work and is taking action to reduce emissions and
resilience in ways that go beyond those described in this chapter, the
overall levels of policy ambition and implementation are still relatively
modest and should be significantly accelerated in the coming years.
Based on this track record, the UAE deserves its self-promoted title
of a leader in climate change policy in the Gulf region. Much, however,
still remains to be done. The policies currently in place, if implemented,
will only result in incremental change, which does not meet the scale
of the challenge for a country that still receives a third of its GDP
and two-thirds of government revenue from oil. First, there are no
emissions-related/renewable energy targets that go beyond the power