Palestinian cities are constantly facing the most significant climate change challenges over the years, such as scarcity of water resources, accelerated desertification, heat waves and droughts, among others, increasing their vulnerability and making it hard for them to cope.
Through these crucial issues, ten municipalities in Palestine have pledged to take action against climate change thanks to the joint efforts and dedication of municipal technical teams and the mayors’ strong commitment: Qalqilia, Salfeet, Dura, Idhna, Yabad, Al-Ram, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Khan Younis, and Bani Suhaila have developed their Sustainable Energy Access and Climate Action Plans, known as SEACAPs.
With the support and guidance from the EU-funded Clima-Med project and its team, technicians and experts in local authorities played an essential role in developing strategic and comprehensive Plans for climate and energy, setting ambitious targets to ensure a sustainable future for generations to come.
The ten SEACAPs aligned with CoM requirements and the Palestinian National Climate Change Policy were designed to adapt the country to climate change impacts in coastal areas, agriculture, food security, health, tourism, biodiversity, and socioeconomic development.
They will play an essential role in shaping their country’s climate and energy policy by supporting the implementation of Palestine’s nationally determined contribution (NDC), which plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 12.8% by 2040 unconditionally. Moreover, their implementation will enable Palestinian Local Authorities to fulfil their local climate engagement towards a proper sustainable development for their cities and concretise their ambitious long-term vision. No doubt that their meaningful climate actions will ensure the well-being of the communities and the environment and inspire other municipalities and citizens alike to join in and contribute to a much-needed momentum for change in the country.
All ten Palestinian municipalities have joined the Covenant of Mayors for the Mediterranean, CoM Med, which ensures that signatories enjoy high visibility at the regional and international levels through the CoM Med and GCoM websites and boosts financial opportunities toward the implementation of the projects listed in the plans.
Clima-Med will continue to strengthen the support to its cities and provide them with all practical tools and assistance to accelerate the implementation of replicable projects in their SEACAPs, empower local authorities as awareness-raisers, and engage citizens against Climate Change to respond to urgent priority needs of the local population actively.
Through the Clima-Med project, the European Union is committed to supporting the transition of South Mediterranean countries to a sustainable, low carbon and climate-resilient economy by enhancing their energy security and strengthening their adaptative capacity to climate change impact.