Dr Sultan Al Jaber meets former Zayed Sustainability Prize winners

Cop28 President-designate heralds impact of the awards, including new climate action category

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Cop28 President-designate, with the 2015 Zayed Sustainability Prize winners M-Kopa in Nairobi. Photo: Zayed Sustainability Prize / Instagram

Cop28 President-designate Dr Sultan Al Jaber met up with former Zayed Sustainability Prize winners in Kenya to highlight the importance of their achievements.

As director general of the prize, Dr Al Jaber met the 2015 award recipients who started M-Kopa, a pay-as-you-go energy service for off-grid customers.

He also met with former winner in the global high schools category and current chief executive of Mazi Mobility, Jesse Forrester, who gave an update on his e-mobility company, which operates a fleet of electric motorbikes and tuk-tuks.

“The global high schools category was launched to inspire youth to realise their potential and encourage them to pursue careers in the field of sustainability,” said Dr Al Jaber, who is also Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and managing director and group chief executive of Adnoc.

“To see this come to fruition through one of our previous winners speaks volumes on the transformative impact of the prize. Seeing first-hand what Jesse has built is truly inspiring and should serve as a model for other young entrepreneurs who want to change the world.”

Dr Al Jaber is in Kenya for the Africa Energy Forum to prepare for the UAE’s hosting of Cop28, which will take place in Dubai at the end of the year and marks the next step in global co-operation on fighting climate change.

He said that SMEs represent 80 per cent of global GDP but the vast majority have not even started their net-zero journeys.

“The Zayed Sustainability Prize is determined to empower those who strive to create value in the energy transition and demonstrate that climate action can lead to sustainable development,” he said.

“As we approach Cop28, I am determined to empower the voices and perspectives of young entrepreneurs, like Jesse, and to ensure that we deliver practical solutions that can change the lives of millions more like him.”

In March, the Zayed Sustainability Prize launched a special climate action category.

It is aimed at recognising and promoting solutions that address climate change and protect the planet's natural resources.

Non-profit organisations and small and medium-sized enterprises were able to apply until May 23. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in Abu Dhabi.

The new category's launch coincides with the UAE's Year of Sustainability, a national initiative to accelerate sustainable development in the country.

The Zayed Sustainability Prize was established in 2008 as a tribute to the sustainability and humanitarian legacy of the UAE Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

The prize recognises organisations and high schools that are delivering effective and inspiring innovations in the following categories: health, food, energy, water, global high schools, climate action.

The new category will further broaden the prize’s reach and effect by rewarding solutions that protect the environment, while addressing the urgent challenge of climate change.

The prize awards $600,000 to each winner in the health, food, energy, water and climate action categories. The global high schools category is split into six world regions, with each school able to claim up to $100,000 to start or further expand their project.