Crown Prince proposes regional centre for Green Climate Fund in Bahrain at COP 21 Summit

Paris, Nov. 30 (BNA): His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, today participated in the COP 21 climate change conference in Paris. During the opening day of the conference, the Crown Prince expressed solidarity with France in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism and conveyed the Kingdom’s sincere condolences to the people of France following the tragic events that took place in Paris earlier this month. The Crown Prince noted that the Paris climate summit represents a historic opportunity for world leaders to address the dangers of climate change, and that Bahrain supports efforts to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. The Crown Prince also emphasised that climate change must be addressed in a manner that balances the shift to cleaner technologies with the need to protect and raise living standards. Turning to Bahrain’s commitment to supporting a new possible agreement on tackling climate change, the Crown Prince said that Bahrain is prepared and willing to host a regional centre for the Green Climate Fund to serve West Asia. In addition, the Crown Prince noted that Bahrain had previously announced its readiness to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and its reliance on fossil fuels, and that its continued efforts have meant that since 2000, the share of fossil fuels in Bahrain’s real GDP has more than halved, reducing from 44% to 20%. The Crown Prince also highlighted that Bahrain is set to develop programmes to encourage pioneering research and the development of new approaches to the utilisation of clean energy in water desalination, and that the Kingdom will pursue projects that include industrial heat capture and the harnessing of solar energy.