Tiffany McGrath

All eyes are looking towards Qatar as it inches closer to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 (5).
Several counties have voiced their concern publicly over their human rights record; a regrettable image Qatar works hard to change. But what about Sustainability? On today’s global stage, there is much to live up to and compete with its Gulf neighbours in a race towards true transformative change.

Sustainability has always been important to the Sultanate of Oman and has been one of the most important pillars of future visions and successive development plans since the seventies. It has continued to integrate sustainable development into its national development plans, and now sustainability has become a significant component of the Oman Vision 2040.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is looking to become the next sustainable tourism destination with ambitious projects that combine luxury hospitality, environmental conservation, and revitalisation efforts, targeting 100 million visitors per year by 2030 by investing in several tourism giga-projects.

The UAE has developed and implemented several frameworks to fulfil every aspect of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We will not explore those here. Goal 7, “Ensure access to affordable and reliable modern energy for all”, and Goal 12, “Responsible consumption and production”, are of particular interest at this time.

With COP27 starting next week in Egypt on 8th November 2022; and around the corner scheduled for the UAE in 2023, we are beginning to hear much about ‘Net Zero’.  The Middle East is abuzz with strategies and pledges to cut emissions, decarbonise economies and achieve ‘net-zero’ by 2050.  But what does it really mean?  Can industries like hospitality really get there, especially those in the traditionally carbon-based economies of the Middle East?