Excellencies, 

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you so much to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Minister Al-Khorayef for organizing this most important conference. And I thank you as well for inviting us and me as the Director General of UNIDO, the UN organization that focuses on energy and industrialization. On behalf of the UN, together with my colleague – the Executive Director of UNEP, Inger Andersen – I thank you and congratulate you.

Without green minerals, no green transition. No green industrialization. For the ongoing global energy transition, the demand for critical minerals will most likely increase by five hundred percent by 2050. Mining: there are great challenges and pressing questions:

Which technologies will be needed to make mining practices more sustainable over the next 30 years? How can Least Developed Countries and Middle Income Countries from Africa, Latin America and Asia – the Global South – fully participate and benefit from this? At the same time, how can we make sure that the up to 100 million of workers in the ASM sector also benefit from technological developments and better conditions in mining.

Excellencies,

The mining of critical minerals still relies on fossil fuels. If we don't invest in greening the mining sector itself, it will defeat the entire purpose of low-carbon technologies! We need to make sure extraction of critical minerals happens with corresponding standards and regulations that prevent the exploitation of people and nature! Moreover, mining supply chains must include local value addition as well.

Despite the challenges involved, there are solutions. Together with international partners and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UNIDO will initiate a Global Alliance and Partnership for Responsible and Green Minerals. Our goal is to create international goals and guidelines and support a certification system that sets clearly defined standards for global business and markets. In doing so it will draw upon existing regulatory frameworks, such as the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises or the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA). Moreover, the new EU Supply Chain Directive will also be setting standards that will in turn have a global impact.

UNIDO will and can also support certification. As a UN organization, UNIDO works closely with the private sector, helping companies comply with international norms and standards. We have the technical expertise and the global network that is needed. A Global Alliance for Responsible and Green Minerals, with binding environmental and social standards for the mining industry and an independent UNIDO certification system, has advantages for all market participants.

First of all: it creates real win-win situations for the countries with the raw materials. Second: it will increase value addition and local production alongside the creation of local jobs in the mining regions themselves. Third: millions of people, primarily in artisanal and small-scale mining, will benefit from proper living wages, adherence to fundamental rights as well as standards in the sector. And fourth: It will help reduce and minimize damage to the environment.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Mining must become a more sustainable practice! Through innovation and transformation in the mining sector it is indeed possible. We do have the solutions to reduce CO2 emissions and toxic pollutants, waste and effluents, to avoid poisoning the air, soil and rivers, and to secure the livelihoods of the people living in mining regions. Yes, the enormous increase in global demand for green minerals is a major challenge. However, it is also a great opportunity for many countries in the Global South to finally eliminate extreme poverty for good.

UNIDO, as the UN agency focusing on sustainable industrialization, is ready to take a leading role. Together with the Saudi Goverment, with international organizations, and with you, Excellencies. Therefore, I invite you to participate in, contribute to and collaborate with the Global Alliance for Responsible and Green Minerals and the development of a global certification system. My gratitude goes particularly to the Saudi Government for their strong support and leadership. Minister Al-Khorayef is recognizing these problems and challenges that I have outlined here. With Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” - with the Middle East Green Initiatives and King Salman’s Development Initiative for Africa – the Kingdom sets clear goals for the sustainable development of industry.