Panel discussion on International Aviation and Climate Change held as part of the COP29 Urbanization, Transport and Tourism Day

Baku, Azerbaijan, 2nd December 2024, ZEX PR WIRE, A high-level panel discussion on International Aviation and Climate Change was held on 20 November as part of the COP29 Urbanization, Transport and Tourism Day.

The event was jointly organized by the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport, the Ministry of Energy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The panel brought together government officials, industry leaders and stakeholders from various sectors to discuss the decarbonization of international aviation.

Jane Hupe, Envoy of ICAO  Secretary General  to  UNFCCC COP, opened the event with a keynote speech.

“While international aviation continues to play a pivotal role for the global connectivity and economic growth, ICAO and its 193 Member States are committed to achieving the sector’s net-zero carbon emissions by 2050”. “Achieving the clean energy transition for aviation will require unprecedented efforts and collaboration towards capacity-building support and access to financing for the production and use of sustainable fuels,” Jane Hupe said.

In his speech, Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Transport Elmin Mammadov noted the importance of strengthening international cooperation in combating climate change.

He said Azerbaijan is developing environmentally friendly freight corridors, pursuing policies to support low-emission logistics and sustainable freight transport operations that meet international environmental standards.

“Azerbaijan is open to partnership with international stakeholders to further develop and implement environmentally friendly practices in the aviation industry,” Elmin Mammadov said.

Then Mohammad Al Tayyar, Program Director of the Ministry of Energy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, also highlighted in his speech the efforts the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues to take to holistically address challenges in the aviation sector while also enabling realistic and sustainable solutions or as he further elaborated on in his remarks: “Saudi Arabia’s commitment to a more sustainable aviation sector is showcased in its robust investment in research and development of Lower Carbon Aviation Fuels,  while ensuring international recognition through its partners such as the ICAO”.

The panel discussion was moderated by Jane Hupe, Envoy of ICAO  Secretary General  to  UNFCCC COP.

Sergey Kravchenko, Professor at Imperial College London, Musaab  Almulla, Vice President of Saudi Aramco, Samir Rzayev, President of Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC, Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s Senior Vice President for Sustainability and Chief Economist, Haldane Dodd, Executive Director of Air Transport  Action Group (ATAG), Nazim Ziyadov, Deputy Director of State Civil Aviation Agency and James Leather, Director of Transport  Sector Office at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) took part in the panel discussion as speakers.

The panelists discussed strong and preventive global measures to reduce emissions from the aviation sector and potential opportunities for cooperation with ICAO Member States to achieve the net zero target.

At the same time, there was an exchange of views  on issues related to the development of  international policies and frameworks in this direction and the main areas of focus for academia, industry, governments and international organizations.