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Al-Ahram Weekly
3 days ago
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Egypt PM accepts Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad's resignation ahead of UNCCD post - Society
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly accepted the resignation of Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad on Sunday following her appointment as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), a top international post she is set to assume later this year. Madbouly assigned Local Development Minister Manal Awad to temporarily oversee the Environment Ministry's duties until a new minister is appointed. Fouad, who has served as Environment Minister since June 2018, was named by UN Secretary-General António Guterres in May as the next UNCCD Executive Secretary, becoming the first Egyptian to hold the role. She will succeed Mauritania's Ibrahim Thiaw, whose term will end in early August. The exact start date for Fouad's three-year term has yet to be announced. Madbouly congratulated Fouad on her new post, calling the appointment a testament to her expertise and leadership in environmental diplomacy. He praised her service and wished her success in supporting international efforts to combat desertification and promote sustainable development. Fouad brings over 25 years of experience in environmental governance, international climate negotiations, and sustainable development policy. She previously served as Assistant Minister of Environment and was Egypt's Ministerial Coordinator and Envoy for COP27, held in Sharm El-Sheikh in 2022. She holds a Master's degree in Environmental Sciences and a PhD in Political Science with a focus on Euro-Mediterranean relations. In a statement welcoming his successor, outgoing Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw said: 'Yasmine Fouad brings with her a wealth of experience and deep commitment to the environment and sustainable development. I warmly congratulate her on her appointment and have full confidence that she will bring new energy and vision to the role.' Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
CairoScene
3 days ago
- Politics
- CairoScene
Egypt's Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad Resigns
Minister of Local Development Dr. Manal Awad will temporarily assume the duties of the Minister of Environment. Jul 20, 2025 Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has accepted the resignation of Dr. Yasmine Fouad, Egypt's Minister of Environment, and appointed Dr. Manal Awad, Minister of Local Development, to temporarily assume her duties in addition to her current role until a new minister is named. Fouad had served as environment minister since 2018, playing a key role in shaping Egypt's climate agenda, including hosting the COP27 climate summit in Sharm El-Sheikh in 2022.
Daily News Egypt
4 days ago
- Politics
- Daily News Egypt
Egypt advances environmental cooperation in Africa at AMCEN summit
Egypt reaffirmed its leadership in shaping Africa's environmental agenda during the 20th African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN), held in Nairobi from 14–18 July 2025. Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad headed Egypt's delegation, using the forum to strengthen bilateral partnerships and advocate for climate resilience and sustainable development across the continent. On the sidelines of the summit, Fouad met with Somalia's Minister of Environment and Climate Change, General Bashir Jama, to explore cooperation in climate change adaptation, combating desertification, and building institutional capacity. Fouad reiterated Egypt's commitment to supporting Somalia and other African countries in addressing shared environmental challenges. Jama praised Egypt's leadership during COP27 and welcomed the proposal to sign a new memorandum of understanding aimed at launching joint projects and introducing sustainable technologies. In a separate high-level meeting, Fouad met with Ambassador Luis Vayas, Chair of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution. She highlighted the urgent need to develop a binding international treaty to tackle plastic waste and pollution. Fouad pointed to Egypt's national progress, including the adoption of extended producer responsibility (EPR) for plastic bags, and stressed the importance of establishing an intergovernmental process backed by independent financing mechanisms to secure treaty effectiveness. Fouad also held discussions with EU Commissioner for the Environment Jessica Roswall on topics including water and food security, as well as plastic pollution. She emphasised AMCEN's critical role in uniting African nations through collective dialogue and joint action to address environmental challenges. Reflecting on the history of AMCEN, founded in Cairo in 1985 by Mostafa Kamal Tolba, Fouad described it as one of Africa's most influential platforms for shaping environmental policy. In her official address to AMCEN, Fouad looked back on four decades of African resilience and progress in environmental protection. She underscored Egypt's own contributions, including updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), projects to protect natural resources, and promotion of the circular economy. Fouad called for fair and accessible international climate finance—particularly for adaptation—and urged greater alignment among the three Rio Conventions on climate change, biodiversity, and desertification. She also voiced hope that the ongoing Geneva negotiations on a global plastic treaty would produce consensus that recognises different national contexts and socioeconomic realities. Egypt, she said, will send a multi-stakeholder delegation to the next negotiation round—including government representatives and private sector stakeholders—to reflect an inclusive, nationally driven approach to the treaty process. Looking ahead to her forthcoming role as Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, Fouad underlined that deeper cooperation, innovation, and inclusive governance will be central to tackling desertification and securing a sustainable future for Africa. She concluded by thanking AMCEN's leadership and South Africa for hosting the summit, and reaffirmed Egypt's commitment to advancing shared environmental priorities across the continent. The Egyptian delegation also included officials from the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Embassy in Nairobi, all working together to position Egypt as a key driver of environmental cooperation and climate action in Africa.
The Wire
02-07-2025
- Politics
- The Wire
60 Former Civil Servants Write to CJI Citing Conflicts of Interest in Central Empowered Committee
New Delhi: A group of 60 retired civil servants have written to Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai, raising concerns about the impartiality of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) which now comes under the aegis of the union environment ministry. The CEC was first created in 2002 under the insistence of the Supreme Court, to keep track of the judgments of the apex court pertaining to forests, wildlife and conservation and look into cases of non-compliance by various parties in these matters. The CEC also contained two independent members, apart from retired government officials. However, the new CEC – reconstituted in December 2023 – comprises only retired officials who have held high posts in the union environment ministry. The retired bureaucrats' letter to the CJI, dated June 30, notes their 'great concern' about the 'conflict of interest, and transgression of the principles of natural justice, which promises to take the diminution of India's forests even further down the road'. Signatories to the letter include Prakriti Srivastava, a former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests in Kerala, Meena Gupta, former Secretary to the union environment ministry, Anup Mukerji (former Chief Secretary of Bihar), N.C. Saxena (former Secretary to the Planning Commission) and Julio Ribeiro (former Director General of Police, Punjab). The CEC and its current members The Supreme Court constituted the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) in 2002. Its role was to keep track of the judgments of the apex court pertaining to forests, wildlife and conservation, and look into cases of non-compliance by various parties in these matters. Currently, the CEC has five members: a chairperson, three members and a member secretary. The current Chairperson of the CEC is Siddhanta Das. Das, who retired as the Director General of Forests and the Special Secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, is a former Indian Forest Service officer of the 1982 batch of the Odisha cadre. The other members of the CEC are C.P. Goyal, Sunil Limaye and J.R. Bhatt. Goyal is also a retired IFS officer and former Director General of Forests and Special Secretary of the union environment ministry, and a former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests in the Uttar Pradesh forest department. Limaye retired as a Principal Chief Conservator of Forest and Chief Wildlife Warden in the Maharashtra forest department. Bhatt, a retired scientist, has served as the lead negotiator for India at the Paris Agreement and several subsequent Conferences of Parties under the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change till COP 27, and was a director in the union environment ministry from April 2005 to September 2012. He was also an advisor to the ministry from September 2012 to March 2023. The Member Secretary of the CEC is Banumathi G., an IFS officer of the 2009 batch. She is currently the Assistant Inspector General of Forests at the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) which comes directly under the union environment ministry. The NTCA not only oversees Project Tiger, but also India's ambitious Project Cheetah in Madhya Pradesh. Conflicts of interest The letter by 60 former civil service officers to the Chief Justice of India dated June 30 points out their 'grave concerns' regarding several conflicts of interest. 'Two of the members of the CEC have held the topmost forest and wildlife posts under the government of India, that of Director General and Special Secretary and have retired recently,' the letter noted. 'A CEC which is comprised of officers who had held the highest positions in the MoEFCC, and were closely involved in policy making, can hardly be expected to give independent advice to the Supreme Court, advice that is different from what they gave while they were in the government,' it read. The letter said that it was a member of the CEC – who was then 'at the helm' in the union environment ministry – who prepared the Forest Conservation Amendment Bill 2023 and defended it before the Joint Parliamentary Committee that was instructed to look into the Bill and the various concerns that the public, including scientists and other experts, had raised. Several petitions submitted in the Supreme Court have challenged the Forest Conservation Amendment Act 2023. The cases are still being heard by the apex court, and its final decision on the matter is pending. The CEC and its members perform an advisory role to the Supreme Court, and will be advising the Court on this case as well. Another concern the letter raises is the lack of independent members in the current CEC. Experts had raised concerns about the new CEC In 2002 when the Supreme Court directed that the CEC be constituted, the CEC comprised three former officers of the union environment ministry, and two other members who were not linked to the union government in any way but had experience in the fields of wildlife, forests and conservation. 'In short, the Committee had not only expert members from the government, but also independent members who had not served in high positions in the government of India, nor had been involved in decisions of forest policy, thus ensuring impartiality and preventing conflict of interest,' the letter to the CJI dated June 30 read. However, in September 2023, the union environment ministry issued a new order specifying that the CEC would now report to the ministry and not the Supreme Court as it used to earlier. This order also announced that the union ministry would now choose the members of the CEC. The Indian Express reported that the environment ministry issued this order after the Supreme Court permitted this 'in the interest of all the stakeholders'. The new CEC, the ministry said, would also not have the two non-government members anymore. Experts had raised concerns at this move immediately. 'The underlying issue pertains to the primary motivation behind this action,' environmental policy researcher Debadityo Sinha, commented on X (formerly Twitter), five days after the ministry pronounced the order. 'It's widely understood that prioritising the 'ease of doing business' will inevitably overshadow all other considerations, leaving the government and CEC with limited leeway or alternative choices beyond adhering to political objectives.' Most of the environmental violation cases involve government actions, Sinha, said on X. 'The pertinent question arises: How can one anticipate the CEC to function independently or issue impartial judgments when its composition solely consists of civil servants appointed by the government?' Sinha also added that when considered alongside the recent revisions to the Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980, it was 'evident' that the union government had 'gained an unprecedented level of control over forests and a substantial influence over the State's jurisdiction concerning forests, which fall within the concurrent list of subjects'. 'This shift in authority has significant implications for the management and governance of our forests,' he said. 'It's already happening' The biased and partial advice given by the current CEC to the Supreme Court is already evident, the retired bureaucrats' letter said. The letter cited the example of the recent order by the Supreme Court on zudpi forests in Maharashtra. Zudpi forests are scrublands and grasslands, often designated as 'wastelands' because they do not typically contain lush tree cover. These lands, however, support a huge diversity of wildlife including critically endangered species such as the Great Indian bustard, a grassland-dwelling bird whose numbers have dwindled to less than 200 across India. This essentially makes the bird far rarer than a tiger in the wild. As per the former civil servants' letter, the Supreme Court on May 22 this year 'recommended the untrammelled use of such forests for 'compensatory afforestation' considering 'zudpi' forests as ecologically inferior forests as they cannot support thick stands of forest trees'. The Court had based this order on the CEC's recommendations, the letter said. It also added that diverting zudpi forests for non-forestry purposes is violative of the Supreme Court's Godavarman order of 1996 (which made it clear that any land that satisfied the dictionary meaning of a forest be considered a forest legally), and other recent orders pertaining to cases surrounding petitions against the amendments made to the Forest Conservation Act of 1980. 'As the Maharashtra zudpi forest case judgement clearly reveals, a CEC which is composed of only retired government officials merely reiterates the position of the government in its advice to the Supreme Court, a clear conflict of interest,' the letter noted. It urged the CJI to ensure that such a CEC not be allowed to advise the Court in the FCAA 2023 cases before it, 'or be part of other such important cases in the interest of the country's forests, wildlife and ecological security'.
Daily News Egypt
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily News Egypt
Egypt's Environment Minister calls for stronger action on desertification, climate resilience in Africa
Egypt's Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, has warned that climate change and desertification pose critical threats to Africa's security and stability, urging coordinated regional action and increased investment in sustainable environmental and climate solutions. Speaking before the African Affairs Committee of Egypt's House of Representatives, Fouad outlined both national and continental efforts to address these mounting challenges. She also highlighted Egypt's leadership role following her appointment as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). 'This position reflects the trust of Egypt's political leadership and continues our country's longstanding commitment to support Africa in confronting the accelerating threat of land degradation,' Fouad said, noting that nearly 45% of Africa's landmass is already affected by desertification. Fouad reviewed Egypt's key achievements under its 2050 National Climate Strategy, including emissions reductions between 2018 and 2022 in the power, oil, and transport sectors. She also pointed to major coastal adaptation projects, such as the construction of 80 kilometres of nature-based seawalls to protect cities in the Nile Delta from rising sea levels. She stressed that desertification has evolved into a political and socioeconomic issue, not merely an environmental one, and reiterated Egypt's call to integrate the three Rio Conventions—climate change, biodiversity, and desertification—through a presidential initiative promoting cross-cutting, nature-based solutions that protect both ecosystems and local livelihoods. Addressing the Loss and Damage Fund, launched during COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Fouad said Egypt is preparing national projects to access funding and has developed technical teams to assess climate-related damages and mobilise resources. She also announced the launch of an interactive climate risk map and a national contingency plan for extreme weather events. Fouad underscored Egypt's leadership in mobilising regional climate finance, particularly for food security initiatives in North and East Africa, and emphasised the importance of linking food, energy, and water security under a unified, climate-resilient development agenda. She also highlighted Egypt's recent legislative reforms, including green incentives for producers of plastic alternatives under the new investment law, and the enforcement of the Extended Producer Responsibility policy aimed at reducing single-use plastic waste. Fouad concluded by reaffirming Egypt's growing international and regional role, noting the country's preparations to host the upcoming Barcelona Convention meeting on the protection of the Mediterranean marine environment. She added that Egypt's domestic environmental efforts are increasingly viewed as a model for developing nations across the Global South.
