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Int'l Gathering to Unveil Saudi Green Initiatives’ Roadmap

Riyadh will host a global forum on the Green Saudi Initiative on Oct. 23-25. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh will host a global forum on the Green Saudi Initiative on Oct. 23-25. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Int'l Gathering to Unveil Saudi Green Initiatives’ Roadmap

Riyadh will host a global forum on the Green Saudi Initiative on Oct. 23-25. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh will host a global forum on the Green Saudi Initiative on Oct. 23-25. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia revealed on Tuesday an international trend to draw a green roadmap aimed at pushing efforts towards preserving the environment and supporting climate protection, through the establishment of the Green Saudi Initiative Forum, which will convene later this month in Riyadh.

The international forum will be held on Oct. 23-25, in the presence of regional and international stakeholders, to announce a roadmap aimed at achieving the goals of the Green Saudi Initiative, and launching innovative solutions to address climate change.

In March, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the Green Saudi Initiative and the Green Middle East, stressing that they will both seek to protect land and nature and make a huge contribution to achieving global targets.

The forum will highlight the Green Youth Summit, a platform to raise awareness on the importance of environmental issues and develop policies to address them. Participants will seek to shape the future of climate action in a framework of interactive activities and intense discussions.

The Forum will be attended by Minister of Energy, the Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, the Governor of the Public Investment Fund, the President of NEOM, and the CEO of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, along with international and regional experts and global leaders, who will discuss the Green Middle East Initiative and the upcoming steps to meet common environmental obligations.

According to official information, the forum will discuss the oceans, atmosphere, space, waterfront, species and ecosystems, in addition to the presentation of a study on the circular bioeconomy.

The Green Saudi Initiative aims to reduce carbon emissions by more than 4% of global contributions, through renewable energy projects that will provide 50% of electricity production inside the Kingdom by 2030 and projects in the field of clean hydrocarbon technologies that will erase more than 130 million tons of carbon emissions, in addition to raising the rate of diversion of waste from landfills to 94%.

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IMF: Pakistan Wins More Financing Assurances from Saudi Arabia, UAE, China

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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IMF: Pakistan Wins More Financing Assurances from Saudi Arabia, UAE, China

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Pakistan has received “significant financing assurances” from China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates linked to a new International Monetary Fund (IMF) program that go beyond a deal to roll over $12 billion in bilateral loans owed to them by Islamabad, IMF Pakistan Mission Chief Nathan Porter said on Thursday.

Porter declined to provide details of additional financing amounts committed by the three countries but said they would come on top of the debt rollover.

The IMF's Executive Board on Wednesday approved a new $7 billion loan for cash-strapped Pakistan, more than two months after the two sides said they had reached an agreement.

The loan — which Islamabad will receive in installments over 37 months — is aimed at boosting Pakistan's ailing economy.

“I won't go into the specifics, but UAE, China and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia all provided significant financing assurances joined up in this program,” Porter told reporters on a conference call.

The global lender said its immediate disbursement will be about $1 billion.

In a statement issued Thursday, the IMF praised Pakistan for taking key steps to restore economic stability. Growth has rebounded, inflation has fallen to single digits, and a calm foreign exchange market have allowed the rebuilding of reserve buffers.

But it also criticized authorities. The IMF warned that, despite the progress, Pakistan’s vulnerabilities and structural challenges remained formidable.

It said a difficult business environment, weak governance, and an outsized role of the state hindered investment, while the tax base remained too narrow.

“Spending on health and education has been insufficient to tackle persistent poverty, and inadequate infrastructure investment has limited economic potential and left Pakistan vulnerable to the impact of climate change,” it warned.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a statement hailed the deal that his team had been negotiating with the IMF since June.

Sharif, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, told Pakistani media that the country had fulfilled all of the lender’s conditions, with help from China and Saudi Arabia.

“Without their support, this would not have been possible,” he said, without elaborating on what assistance Beijing and Riyadh had provided to get the deal over the line.

The Pakistani government has vowed to increase its tax intake, in line with IMF requirements, despite protests in recent months by retailers and some opposition parties over the new tax scheme and high electricity rates.

Pakistan for decades has been relying on IMF loans to meet its economic needs.

The latest economic crisis has been the most prolonged and has seen Pakistan facing its highest-ever inflation, pushing the country to the brink of a sovereign default last summer before an IMF bailout.

Inflation has since tempered, and credit ratings agency Moody’s has upgraded Pakistan’s local and foreign currency issuer and senior unsecured debt ratings to “Caa2” from “Caa3”, citing improving macroeconomic conditions and moderately better government liquidity and external positions.