KUALA LUMPUR: The United Kingdom, one of the nations at the forefront of reversing environmental decline and tackling climate change, has inked a new partnership agreement with the Malaysian government to strengthen co-operation on climate action.
The partnership was signed between UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Minister for the Pacific and International Environment, Lord Zac Goldsmith and Malaysian Environment and Water Minister, Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man on Tuesday (June 7).
The British High Commission Kuala Lumpur, in a statement said the 'UK-Malaysia Climate Partnership' will see both countries work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, share technical expertise, to build capacity and increase biodiversity and climate ambition.
The partnership covers five main areas: collaboration on climate and biodiversity issues, knowledge sharing through capacity building activities, promoting scientific and technical collaboration, supporting private sector involvement on green finance, and promoting outreach activities.
Goldsmith said action to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss requires commitment and collaboration.
"The UK-Malaysia Climate Partnership marks an important step in building on the progress made at COP26 (United Nations Climate Change Conference), and will further deepen the strong ties and knowledge-sharing between our countries to address this global challenge.
"Malaysia has taken significant action on clean growth, sustainable urbanisation, green finance, forest and biodiversity protection, supply chains and carbon markets, and by continuing to share our experiences and expertise we can work together to limit carbon emissions and protect precious natural ecosystems," he was quoted as saying in the statement.
British High Commissioner to Malaysia Charles Hay said Malaysia is one of the most eco-diverse countries in the world.
"We want to support Malaysia's transition to a low carbon economy and reduction of emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, along with the preservation of natural resources for future generations.
"Through the UK-Malaysia Climate Partnership, we have now formalised specific areas of collaboration to address the climate challenges together."
The British High Commission said the partnership will further deepen ties between the UK and Malaysia in line with the Strategic Dialogue agreed between the UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah, the Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs in November 2021.
At COP26, hosted by the UK in Glasgow last year, Malaysia, which has around 54 per cent forest cover and is home to some of the oldest and most biodiverse forests in the world, signed up to the Global Leaders' Declaration on Forests and Land Use, and the Global Methane Pledge, as well as the FACT Dialogue Roadmap for Action, and the Global Action Agenda for Innovation in Agriculture (ClimateShot).
The UK is delivering several projects in Malaysia which are contributing in practical ways including strengthening nature-based solutions in the forested state of Terengganu, supporting low-carbon city planning in Iskandar and Melaka, promoting sustainable urbanisation in Kuala Lumpur, renewable energy generation in off-grid villages in Sabah, and mobilising green finance by working with Malaysian financial institutions including Bank Negara Malaysia.
The UK also announced new support to Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia at Cop 26. The £110 million (RM 608.9 million) Asean Catalytic Green Finance Facility will support new sustainable infrastructure projects and the £274 million fund, under the UK Climate Action for a Resilient Asia (CARA) programme, will strengthen climate adaptation across the Indo-Pacific.
According to the Green Future Index 2022, the UK, a country that has shown that climate action can coexist hand-in-hand with economic growth, ranks fourth after Iceland, Denmark and Netherlands as the country most prepared for a low-carbon future, while Malaysia ranks 65th.
The report is the second edition of the comparative ranking of 76 nations and territories on their ability to develop a sustainable, low-carbon future. It measures the degree to which their economies are pivoting toward clean energy, industry, agriculture, and society through investment in renewables, innovation, and green policy.