Dubai [UAE], May 22: The United Arab Emirates is marking the International Day for Biological Diversity this year under the theme "Acting Locally for Global Impact", reaffirming that protecting biodiversity depends on the strength of local action and the commitment of communities, organisations and governments working together to achieve this goal.
On this occasion, the United Nations stressed the importance of achieving the targets of the "Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework", which established 23 targets for 2030 and five global goals for 2050 aimed at protecting biodiversity, halting environmental degradation and reversing its course over the next 25 years.
This comes amid the major achievements realised by the UAE in this field, as highlighted in the country's Seventh National Report on Biodiversity, prepared as part of implementing commitments under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.
National teams in the UAE succeeded in increasing the number of approved protected areas to 55 terrestrial and marine reserves covering 19.04 percent of the country's total area, while also achieving tangible progress in protecting endangered species and improving their status through integrated conservation, breeding, habitat management and international cooperation programmes.
The report, approved by the Cabinet during its meeting on 29th March, showed that the UAE achieved notable progress in coastal and marine ecosystems through the National Carbon Sequestration Project, which aims to plant 100 million mangrove trees by 2030, with more than 50 percent of the target achieved by 2024.
The report also indicated that public awareness rose to 89 percent, while the environmental behaviour index improved to 85 percent in 2024. A number of national initiatives and programmes were implemented to strengthen the UAE's contribution to biodiversity conservation targets and environmental requirements in partnership and cooperation with relevant international organisations.
In 2026, the UAE continues a series of initiatives and projects aimed at enhancing biodiversity. The country issued a new law regulating and monitoring international trade in endangered animals and plants, and also launched, through the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund and Mubadala Foundation, an international initiative to protect dugongs and seagrass habitats in the UAE and four other countries.
Meanwhile, the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi launched the "Hamdan bin Zayed: The World's Richest Seas" initiative, aimed at doubling fish stocks in the emirate by 2030 as part of efforts to enhance marine productivity and protect resources. The agency also achieved a remarkable global accomplishment by raising the sustainable fishing index to 100 percent by the end of 2025, compared to 8 percent in 2018.
Dubai approved the "Layan Oasis" project, covering one million square metres and featuring a vast natural lake, to highlight the desert environment and promote sustainability and quality of life awareness. In Sharjah, the Environment and Protected Areas Authority recorded the discovery of four new spider species, reflecting the richness of biodiversity and scientific research in the country.
The UAE continues its biodiversity conservation journey in line with the objectives and frameworks outlined in the National Biodiversity Strategy, the National Strategy to Combat Desertification, the National Strategy for Sustainability of the Marine and Coastal Environment, and other related strategies.
The National Biodiversity Strategy primarily aims to address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by integrating biodiversity values across all sectors, reducing direct pressures on biodiversity, promoting sustainable use, and improving biodiversity status through conserving ecosystems, species and genetic diversity.
Recognising the importance of combating desertification in preserving biodiversity, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, in cooperation with its strategic partners, prepared the country's first National Strategy to Combat Desertification in 2003. It was updated and developed in 2014, while in 2024 the Cabinet approved the National Strategy to Combat Desertification 2022-2030, which includes 33 key short- and long-term initiatives and a national action agenda through to 2030.
In June 2024, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment announced details regarding the inclusion of nine globally significant biodiversity sites in the UAE under the "Key Biodiversity Areas" Secretariat.
The ministry had also launched the National Red List for endangeredspecies in 2022, which includes a comprehensive assessment of species status within the country's local environment.
The UAE complements its biodiversity conservation efforts with an integrated legislative framework, including Federal Law No. 23 of 1999 concerning the exploitation, protection and development of living aquatic resources; Federal Law No. 24 of 1999 on the protection and development of the environment, which prohibits the hunting, transport, killing or harming of wild or marine organisms; and Federal Law No. 11 of 2002 on regulating and monitoring international trade in endangered animals and plants and its executive regulations.
The UAE has joined numerous international agreements aimed at preserving biodiversity, including the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its biosafety protocols related to genetically modified resources, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 2007, and several other international agreements and global treaties.
Source: Emirates News Agency