Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cisco announced the company’s role as IT Services Provider of the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27). Cisco, among others, will provide professional and technical services to design, implement and support the wireless network infrastructure at COP27 to enable highly secure connectivity for all attendees and the host nation.
The announcement was made following the ceremonial signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Assistant Foreign Minister Ambassador Achraf Ibrahim, General Coordinator for COP27, and Ayman Elgohary, Managing Director for Egypt, North Africa, and Levant at Cisco.
Cisco's support for COP27 builds on the company’s innovations and commitment to sustainability. For more than 15 years, Cisco has worked towards a sustainable future by focusing on renewable energy, the energy efficiency of our products and a circular economy. It sets clear, ambitious, public goals against which it measures and reports progress such as the commitment to reach net zero, for all scopes of greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.
Ambassador Achraf Ibrahim, General Coordinator for organizational and financial aspects of the conference, welcomed Cisco as the IT Services Provider at COP27. He highlighted that the Egyptian presidency is actively engaging with leading companies like Cisco and other stakeholders to accelerate climate action. He also emphasized the crucial role of bringing these ecosystems together to support the full implementation of the Paris Agreement.
Reem Asaad, Vice President, Cisco Middle East and Africa, said: “We believe that technology plays a pivotal role in helping countries meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, as we are witnessing in Egypt, with investments aligned to the country’s Vision 2030 agenda. At Cisco, our collaborative approach to sustainability is built into our business. We are constantly innovating our technologies – including products and solutions for secure hybrid work, smart buildings and connectivity – to help enable customers reduce their own carbon footprint. Recognizing the importance of collaboration, we are proud to support COP27, a vital platform to accelerate progress.”
Ayman Elgohary, Managing Director for Egypt, North Africa and Levant at Cisco also commented: “For over two decades, Cisco has been actively supporting Egypt’s digital journey by focusing on talent development, digital transformation and supporting entrepreneurship. Today, we are very proud to announce our key role in COP27 as we believe that to flourish in today’s digital-first world, nations and businesses should operate through a twin transition – both digital and green.”
The United Nations conference will be hosted in Sharm-El Sheikh, Egypt, between November 6-18, 2022, under the theme of “Delivering for People and the Planet”.
Faced with a growing energy crisis, record greenhouse gas concentrations, and increasing extreme weather events, COP27 seeks renewed solidarity between countries, to deliver on the landmark Paris Agreement. The conference will build on the outcomes of COP26 to seek action, such as urgently reducing greenhouse gas emissions, building resilience, adapting to the impacts of climate change, and delivering on the commitments to finance climate action in developing countries.