The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development Launches Graduation Ceremony for Students of the “Be an Ambassador” for Sustainable Development and Launching the “Road to COP27” Initiative

Egypt’s Ministry of Planning and Economic Development launched on Sunday the activities of the graduation ceremony for the students of the Be an Ambassador for Sustainable Development and the launch of the "Road to COP27" initiative.During her speech at the ceremony, Dr. Hala El-Said expressed her happiness at the graduation of the students of the Be an Ambassador for Sustainable Development initiative launched by the Ministry of Planning in November 2020 through the National Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development, the training arm of the ministry. She stressed that this initiative has been a dream since the launch of the sustainable development strategy, Egypt's Vision 2030, to train and qualify Egyptian youth to study global and national sustainable development goals and their applications in all fields, to raise awareness of development issues, to become ambassadors in their societies, and to spread the thought of sustainable development.El-Said added that after about a year and a half of work and a series of intensive courses, according to the best training methods, a group of promising Egyptian youth benefited from different preparatory and specialized levels and fields, as well as training related to personal skills.El-Said explained that the “Be an Ambassador” initiative is characterized by the fact that it brings together more than one value and achieves some considerations that the Egyptian state attaches the utmost importance to, including strengthening the state’s efforts to qualify human cadres capable of leading development efforts within the framework of expanding investment in people, in addition to the participation of an elite group of Egyptian youth from all Egyptian governorates in the initiative.
El-Said referred to what was stated in the report prepared by the United Nations Environment Program on efforts to adapt to climate change that the cost of adaptation measures in developing countries is estimated at $70 billion annually, and is expected to reach $300 billion in 2030 and $500 billion US dollars in 2050.

El-Said stressed that adapting to climate changes has become a major priority for the Egyptian state, and policies aimed at supporting the transition to a green economy and maintaining the sustainable use of natural resources came at the heart of the structural reforms program, which represents the second phase of the economic and social reform program launched by the state in 2016.

El-Said referred to state projects and government interventions to confront climate change and achieve green recovery, which came within the state's investment plan in the areas of transport and clean mobility, which includes the Ministry of Transport's projects for expansions in subway lines, and the project of the fast electric train Ain Sukhna - the new administrative capital - El Alamein New, and the monorail lines, the Administrative Capital - and 6th of October City).

El-Said addressed the state’s efforts to promote the transition towards a green economy and provide financing to achieve sustainable development goals, and what was done in this context, the preparation of the first national report on financing sustainable development in Egypt, and Egypt’s launch of green bonds worth $750 million. For the first time in Africa and the Middle East.
 She highlighted that the private sector plans to launch green bonds worth $120-200 million, in addition to the efforts of the "Egypt Sovereign Fund for Investment and Development" in the field of climate change by investing in several green projects such as the hydrogen and green ammonia production project.
El-Said added that based on the foregoing national efforts to confront the phenomenon of climate change, the Arab Republic of Egypt is honored to host the Summit of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) for the year 2022 in Sharm El Sheikh, and this conference is a reflection of the pivotal role that Egypt plays regionally and internationally.
El-Said explained that the Road to Climate Change Conference of the Parties initiative is a comprehensive training umbrella to train and qualify the largest number of Egyptian youth at home, expatriates abroad, and school students, to spread a culture of sustainability and knowledge of the dangers of climate change, how to adapt to its effects and reduce emissions.
The National Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (NIGSD) will train graduates of the “Be an Ambassador for Sustainable Development” initiative on the issues of climate change, adaptation, and reducing emissions, in cooperation with the best international universities specialized in climate change issues, according to El-Said

Ambassador Nabila Makram, Minister of Immigration, said that what the Minister of Planning and Economic Development and her team did make all the young people inside and outside feel that they are already in the new republic that opens its arm to all Egyptians inside or outside to innovate and benefit their country.
Makram added that the "Be an Ambassador" initiative is a distinct initiative that gives hope to the youth of Egypt to engage with the state in the battle of awareness, and to introduce the youth to the efforts made by the state and what the sustainable development goals and Egypt's Vision 2030 mean, to create a large segment of Egyptian youth who can support the state.Dr. Yasmine Fouad, Minister of Environment, said that the graduation of the first batch of Be Ambassadors is linked to the idea of ​​investing in people.For his part, Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and climate pioneer for the Egyptian presidency of COP27 praised, during a recorded speech, the "Be an Ambassador" initiative and the initiative's training curriculum, which qualifies participants to the highest levels of knowledge of sustainable development and its challenges.