EY launches MENA’s first Climate Change Readiness Index to support regional decarbonization efforts

• EY MENA Climate Change Readiness Index (CCRI) shows that nearly every country in the region has substantially reduced per capita emissions from 2015 levels.
• The Index provides scorecards for the GCC countries, Egypt and Jordan so that it can help governments, investors, and citizens to evaluate their climate change readiness.

EY has announced the launch of its Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Climate Change Readiness Index (CCRI), a pioneering tool designed to help countries in the region assess and improve their resilience to the impacts of climate change.

The Index measures the readiness of the six members of the GCC as well as Egypt and Jordan across several areas, such as the effectiveness of their adaptation and mitigation strategies and their ability to finance and implement these strategies. It provides scorecards that can assist governments, investors and citizens in tracking the performance of the included countries compared to global benchmarks on 37 quantitative and qualitative indicators of climate change readiness. The Index also offers a comprehensive overview of the regional and global context in which these countries operate, including the economic, political, and social factors that can influence their outcomes.

Yasir Ahmad, EY MENA Climate Change and Sustainability Services Leader, says:

"Climate change is a global challenge and addressing it requires collective action. To support these efforts, we are delighted to launch the MENA region’s first Climate Change Readiness Index that will serve as a valuable tool for governments, businesses, and civil society organizations as they work to evaluate and enhance their readiness to tackle environmental challenges and impacts. The Index is designed to be flexible, responsive, and personalized, therefore allowing countries to monitor their progress over time and identify areas for improvement."

The CCRI is based on two pillars:

1. Adaptation: adjustments made in response to existing climate change impacts. E.g., building environments that are flood-resistant or can withstand higher temperatures.
2. Mitigation: steps taken to curb future emissions. E.g., reducing energy consumption and adopting renewables.

MENA region reduces per capita emissions

The CCRI shows that almost all participating countries have substantially reduced their per capita emissions from 2015 levels as they continue to fulfill their ambitions to diversify their economies away from fossil fuels through large capital investment. The carbon capture and renewables revolution has complemented this trend, with nearly every country in the region introducing a long-term net-zero strategy.  

Richard Paton, EY-Parthenon MENA Leader, says:

“The MENA region is already a global leader in carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) and planning for the future of circular economies. Together, with the leadership the region is taking in energy transition, the use of renewables, and development of hydrogen. MENA is on track to become a forerunner in the development of a low carbon economy.”

The Index is based on a robust and transparent methodology, developed using data from reliable, validated international sources, such as those compiled by the UN system, the World Bank (WB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other data aggregators, to ensure a uniform methodology and data collection process.

EY is committed to working with governments, businesses and civil society organizations in the MENA region to support the transition to a more sustainable and resilient future. The launch of the MENA CCRI marks an important milestone on this journey that will help to drive the necessary action and collaboration.

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