Istanbul: Morocco has made sustainable development and the ecological transition one of the strategic pillars of its public policies, as part of a comprehensive reform vision led by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, stated on Wednesday in Istanbul the Speaker of the House of Councillors, Mohamed Ould Errachid. This vision is based on achieving a balance between the requirements of socio-economic development, environmental protection, and ensuring the sustainability of natural resources, he stressed before the 5th Conference of the Parliamentary Network of the Non-Aligned Movement, held on the sidelines of the 152nd General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
According to Agence Marocaine De Presse, Ould Errachid underscored that Morocco has, in recent years, adopted a set of integrated national policies and strategies aimed at building cities that are more sustainable and resilient to climate change, noting that the National Strategy for Sustainable Development serves as the reference framework for public policies, following a development model that integrates the environmental dimension across various sectors. In this regard, he pointed out that the Kingdom has worked to strengthen integrated urban planning by adopting new approaches to urban development and launching ambitious programs to rehabilitate large and medium-sized cities, while accelerating the pace of the energy transition and increasingly relying on renewable energy sources.
Morocco, he added, has attached particular importance to sustainable urban transport, the protection of water resources, the fight against water stress, and the promotion of the circular economy. In the same context, Ould Errachid underlined that the Conference of the Non-Aligned Movement Parliamentary Network is being held in an international context marked by the accelerating pace of urban transformations, where cities have become central spaces for economic and social growth, while at the same time facing growing challenges related to climate change and the need for more sustainable and resilient infrastructure.
Chaired by the Speaker of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan and President of the Non-Aligned Movement Parliamentary Network, Sahiba Qafarova, the conference concluded with the adoption of the “Istanbul Declaration,” in which participants emphasized the need to strengthen unity and intensify joint action within the Movement to address emerging challenges threatening the well-being and stability of member states. The Istanbul Declaration also highlighted the importance of flexible global supply chains to ensure food and energy security and economic stability, particularly for developing countries, as well as the need to strengthen international cooperation in the energy sector to guarantee access to reliable, sustainable, and affordable energy, including clean and renewable sources.
Furthermore, participants stressed the urgency of taking the necessary measures to achieve a just, lasting, comprehensive, and peaceful settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in accordance with United Nations Security Council resolutions and internationally recognized initiatives, including the Arab Peace Initiative.