Congo’s Environment Minister: King Mohammed VI Is ‘Patron’ to Africa’s Climate Committees

Rabat – King Mohammed VI is the “patron” of the three climate committees in Africa, Congo’s Minister of Environment, Sustainable Development and the Congo Basin, Arlit Soudan Nonault said on Tuesday.

Under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, Morocco became a “senior partner” in the framework of the Climate Commission, along with 15 countries in the Congo Basin, which represent 10 percent of the world’s biodiversity, Nonault said while talking to the press on the sidelines of a meeting with Morocco’s Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita.

Led by King Mohammed VI, the coalition of 15 countries is now able to speak with one voice under the framework of South-South cooperation, without forgetting to involve the countries of the North, the official explained.

She stressed that climate emergency measures require mobilizing funding for integration and sovereignty projects that meet the aspirations of the region’s population.

Nonault commended the commitment of King Mohammed VI to biodiversity and climate, especially in the African continent, noting that he was behind the initiative to establish three climate committees in November 2016 at the African Action Summit.

Talking to the press, the Congolese politician said that her visit is part of the preparations leading to the Summit of the Three Global Forest Basins, scheduled to be held next October in Congo’s capital Brazzaville.

Highlighting the significance of the upcoming summit, she said that it “will enable us to engage in the dynamism of the Paris Agreement,” adding that the Brazzaville meeting will also address the Amazon basin and Borneo-Mekong basin in Southeast Asia, which represent 80% of global biodiversity.

Morocco has spearheaded multiple climate initiatives in Africa in recent years.

In November 2022, the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection joined forces with the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM) to launch a climate mitigation initiative that covers all countries on the continent.

Under the name “Just Transition in Africa: Green Skills, Behavior Change, and Social Dialogue,” the initiative aims to support African countries build capacities in the field of training workers and supporting them to adapt to new economic challenges that climate change poses.