Nice: Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad delivered Egypt’s national address on behalf of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi at the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) held in Nice, France, from June 9 to 13. The event was attended by representatives from governments, international financial institutions, NGOs, researchers, civil society groups, and the private sector.

According to State Information Service Egypt, Fouad described the conference as a platform for global leaders to discuss the preservation of natural resources, essential for sustaining life on Earth for both present and future generations. She emphasized that 2025 exemplifies the interconnectedness of global environmental challenges, highlighting sea level rise as an indicator of climate change, coral bleaching as evidence of biodiversity loss, and the escalating threat of plastic pollution in marine ecosystems.

Fouad reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to multilateral environmental cooperation and outlined key national efforts. These efforts
include constructing over 70 km of nature-based coastal solutions across five governorates to support coastal communities, launching a national climate adaptation plan, rehabilitating northern lakes to improve the livelihoods of fishing communities, greening Egyptian ports such as Damietta, Port Said, and the Suez Canal, and enforcing a fishing ban in the Red Sea to allow ecological restoration.

Fouad concluded by affirming Egypt’s leadership in regional and international environmental dialogue. She highlighted Egypt’s upcoming hosting of the COP24 of the Barcelona Convention, emphasizing the shared responsibility of 22 Mediterranean nations to pursue ambitious and practical water and marine protection goals.