The official made the announcement during a meeting with the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Simon Stiell, with the aim of analyzing the role and leadership of Addis Ababa at COP28, which will take place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from next November 30th to December 12th.

Assefa expressed the willingness to work with other African countries to ensure that Africa is heard at the event, and stressed on the needs for developed nations to meet their commitments to climate finance and mitigation action.

Stiell welcomed Ethiopia’s leadership on climate change and expressed support for the efforts to work with other countries on the continent in the run-up to COP28.

He also stressed the need for Ethiopia’s participation in the upcoming African Climate Summit in Kenya and the UN Secretary General’s Climate Summit in New York, scheduled for next September, and praised the country’s commitment and willingness to work with others to address climate crisis.

The parties also discussed the need for Ethiopia to focus on adaptation, including food system transformation, loss and damage, and ambitious mitigation actions.

Ethiopia is the current president of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN), which concludes on Friday, and which met under the theme “Seize opportunities and enhance collaboration to address environmental challenges in Africa.” The objective of the event was to strengthen collaboration between institutions and improve the implementation of global and regional environmental frameworks to address the challenges facing the continent.

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