International Conference on Climate Change and Human Rights held amid wide international participation in Doha, Qatar

Under the patronage of HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior of Qatar Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani, the International Conference on Climate Change and Human Rights kicked off on 21 February in Doha with the participation of international organizations and more than 300 experts and stakeholders from different countries around the globe.

Organised by the National Human Rights Committee of Qatar (NHRC), in cooperation with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Development Programme (UNDP), League of Arab States, and Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), the two-day conference aims to emphasize the importance of rights-based climate action.

It also aims to highlight good practices relevant to Qatar and other active partners, including governments, the United Nations (UN), civil society organizations and companies, and develop recommendations for strengthening cooperation to support rights-based climate action around the globe, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa region.

During the opening session, which was attended by several ministers and officials from relevant entities in Qatar, HE Chairperson of NHRC Maryam bint Abdullah al-Attiyah said that the conference provides a valuable opportunity for discussion and exchange of knowledge and experiences, in order to advance and accelerate the pace of dealing with climate change and environmental risks from a human rights perspective.

She pointed out that the conference seeks to propose actions that help to make peace with nature, and to reach tangible recommendations regarding the promotion of human rights-based action on climate change, which could crystalize into the adoption of specific legal obligations that are implementable and may be adopted as a norm and a tool by the international human rights system.

The head of the Azerbaijan Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, human rights defender Dr. Ahmad Shahidov, who participated in the international conference, drew attention to climate change, natural disasters and earthquakes in the world, and emphasized the importance of ensuring fundamental human rights and freedoms in emergency situations.

Dr. Ahmad Shahidov noted that the State of Qatar and especially the National Human Rights Committee of Qatar have great experience in holding such international events and highly appreciated the importance of the two-day conference held in Doha.

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