Saudi Arabia pledges $2.5B to Middle East green initiative

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday pledged $2.5 billion for a green initiative in the Middle East region over the next 10 years.

Bin Salman arrived in Egypt's seaside resort of Sharm el-Sheikh earlier Monday to attend the Middle East Green Initiative Summit, held in tandem with UN climate conference COP27.

The initiative was launched by the Saudi crown prince last year as part of efforts to reduce regional carbon emissions.

The initiative "aims to reduce carbon emissions in the region and plant 50 billion trees," bin Salman said in a speech to the meeting.

For his part, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who co-chairs the summit, called the green initiative "important" and an "excellent opportunity" to tackle climate change.

The summit is intended to lay out a roadmap for regional climate action, assess the consequences of climate change, and present solutions.

The first edition of the Middle East Green Initiative Summit was held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh in October 2021.

Notably, these initiatives aim to plant 50 billion trees in the region and reduce carbon emissions by more than 10%.