Minister joins volunteers in clean-up
dubai — It was a clean-up drive with a difference as 4,200 volunteers spread over seven locations in Dubai collected 25 tonnes of waste from an area of 18km. Among the participants was Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy, who gave a huge impetus to the campaign.
They were equipped with cotton gloves, biodegradable plastic bags and containers as they collected the trash as part of the 17th session of the annual Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) Clean-Up UAE. The event was held on Saturday in association with the Dubai Municipality.
The nationwide drive has already completed clean-ups in Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah and Abu Dhabi. The total quantity of waste collected from the five emirates — including Dubai — reached 32.5 tonnes.
Al Mansouri said: “Like last year, I have been looking forward to this event, which is a great symbol of joint efforts and commitment of all the people living in the UAE. Our country has a unique desert environment that harbours a large number of fragile ecosystems. And it has always been the sincere desire of our leaders, right from the beginning of the federation, to achieve growth and development while protecting the health and wealth of our environment.”
He said that growth “almost always” comes with some hidden costs, particularly ecological costs.
“In acknowledgement, the UAE has signed and ratified 16 international environmental agreements that govern the global environment. Environmental protection is the main objective of the UAE’s developmental policies that are aimed at increasing green areas, developing water resources, improving marine environment and protecting it from pollution, preserving fisheries and livestock, and developing strategies to protect biodiversity.
Our country has a unique desert environment that harbours a large number of fragile ecosystems. And it has always been the sincere desire of our leaders to achieve growth while protecting the environment.”
Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri,
Minister of Economy
“The UAE has many federal laws, ministerial decrees and executive by-laws for the preservation of the environment. UAE Vision 2021 and the Green Economy initiative have been developed keeping in view the need to incorporate environment protection in our development map.”
Abdula Aziz Al Midfaa, vicechair of EEG, said: “I would like to express my overwhelming happiness for the presence of thousands of participants who are with us today and those who have joined us in the other locations over the last week. Together, we are taking proactive steps to protect
and preserve the UAE’s unique ecosystem. The enthusiasm grows exponentially every year as more and more people partake in this large-scale, crosssector initiative that effectively promoted social change in the last 17 years.”
Habiba Al Mar’ashi, chairperson
The enthusiasm grows exponentially every year as more and more people partake in this large-scale, crosssector initiative that effectively promoted social change in the last 17 years.”
Abdula Aziz Al Midfaa, vice-chair of EEG
of EEG, said: “As an accredited body of the United Nations Environment Programme, EEG is proud to announce that the CleanUp UAE 2018 campaign will serve as an effective implementation platform for many sustainable development goals.”