UAE and IUCN

Since its formation as a federation, the United Arab Emirates has been a leader in environmental conservation. Since 2001, UAE and Abu Dhabi have supported the Conservation Translocation Specialist Group (formerly RSG) and the publication of all seven editions of the Global Re-introduction Perspectives since 2008.

In 2008, Abu Dhabi hosted the first meeting of the Chairs of the Species Survival Commission, and since then it has hosted and supported all five SSC Leader’s Meetings, including the latest one held in October 2024.

The UAE, through the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD), has also continued to support the IUCN SSC Chair’s Office to implement the IUCN Programme for the quadrennium since 2011. The UAE has also been a framework donor from 2011 to 2015.

The UAE-IUCN partnership also provided crucial financial support for the Species Pavilion at the IUCN World Conservation Congress held in Barcelona in October 2008. The Mohamed Bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, which launched during the congress with a seed fund of over 25 million euros, has supported over 3000 projects covering nearly 1,800 species globally.

The UAE maintains its partnership with the IUCN, actively promoting its work within the country and developing its knowledge products at the national level. The UAE has developed the IUCN Red List of Species for the country and, in partnership with the IUCN SSC, produced an Abu Dhabi Red List of Species.

In 2022, EAD and IUCN produced the Abu Dhabi Red List of Ecosystems, the first such assessment in the West Asia region and the first for an arid ecosystem. More recently, in 2024, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment produced the ‘Key Biodiversity Areas of the UAE’ report.

The election of HE Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, Managing Director of EAD, as the IUCN President during the 2021 Marseille Congress has further strengthened the UAE-IUCN bond. HE Dr. Shaikha Salem Al Dhaheri, the Secretary General of EAD, continues to be the IUCN Councilor from the West Asia region, and was first elected to the Council during the Hawaii Congress in 2016.