Closing 31 facilities. “Climate Change and Environment” takes legal measures against non-compliant facilities

During the campaigns it implemented in the first half of this year, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, in cooperation with the competent local authorities, took a number of legal measures against non-compliant establishments, including referring 104 establishments to the competent authorities and committees to complete the regulatory procedures, issuing warnings to 45 establishments to rectify their conditions, closing 31 establishments proven to be in violation of applicable legislation and requirements, in addition to stopping the activity of 16 establishments until the causes of the violation are removed and compliance with legal requirements is achieved.

The campaigns included 30 joint inspection campaigns targeting 269 establishments, including pet shops, livestock and bird markets, nurseries and other outlets, in cooperation with the competent local authorities at the state level.

It also included establishments that practice the relevant activities and have not completed the required procedures, as the Ministry, in coordination with the economic development departments, circulated to the owners and proprietors of animal establishments the necessity of reconciling their situations, ensuring that these establishments do not carry out their activities except after obtaining the Ministry’s licenses. It also gave them a period to reconcile their statuses, before taking legal measures against establishments that did not comply with the relevant laws and legislation.

The implementation of these campaigns comes within the framework of the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to enhance compliance with environmental legislation and regulations, and raise the efficiency of the control and inspection system, in a way that contributes to protecting the environment, preserving natural resources and achieving sustainability. The specialized teams are responsible for verifying the extent of facilities’ compliance with laws and legislation and aligning their practices with approved legislation and regulations such as animal welfare and environmental safety laws, and laws regulating international trade in endangered animals and plants.

Assistant Undersecretary for the Regions Sector at the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Marwan Abdullah Al Zaabi, said: “These inspection campaigns reflect the Ministry’s approach based on partnership and integration of roles between the Ministry and the competent local authorities, which enhances the efficiency of the system of oversight and enforcement of environmental legislation at the state level, establishes a culture of compliance, and raises the level of facilities’ compliance with the laws and requirements regulating their activities.”

Al Zaabi added: “The Ministry attaches great importance to informing community members about environmental legislation, regulations, and the penalties resulting from violating them, based on the firm conviction that raising awareness represents a basic foundation for enhancing compliance and voluntary commitment. At the same time, the Ministry continues to implement laws and regulations, while raising the awareness of all concerned, including traders and breeders, of the importance of these laws in the sustainability of all relevant sectors and in order to achieve all the development goals that the Ministry is working to achieve in the areas of food security, biodiversity, nature conservation, and the environment.”

The Ministry continues to develop the control and compliance system by modernizing procedures and adopting digital solutions, in a way that enhances the efficiency of enforcing legislation. It has also introduced procedures to develop the general framework for the governance of processes and procedures, and has employed the latest technologies and automated the electronic compliance system in implementing inspection and audit work on environmental, agricultural, animal and fishery facilities licensed at the state level, which contributes to accelerating procedures, raising the efficiency of the control and inspection system, and enhancing the accuracy of follow-up, in support of the objectives of the government bureaucracy zeroing program, and in a way that ensures Completing procedures more efficiently and effectively.

The Ministry’s specialists continue to track and monitor electronic accounts on various social media platforms that display or promote content that violates the relevant laws and legislation in order to take the necessary measures and issue judicial arrest reports against the owners of the violating accounts.

The Ministry also implements programs to train specialized cadres in the relevant authorities to raise their capabilities and clarify tasks and responsibilities to ensure compliance in enforcing legislation.

The Ministry seeks to promote a culture of compliance as a societal responsibility that contributes to protecting wildlife and preserving biodiversity by transferring knowledge and publishing awareness pictures and clips on its verified accounts via social media platforms and in several languages, as well as educating school and university students by holding workshops, sessions, various interactive dialogues, and educational lectures in areas related to the Ministry’s specializations.

In addition, the Ministry has provided a channel for communication and receiving observations and reports related to any transgressions or violations of the provisions of relevant laws and legislation, through the government’s Tawasul 171 platform, which enhances the efficiency of follow-up and oversight, and enables the competent authorities to verify reports and take the necessary measures in accordance with the approved legal frameworks.