RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Netzero platform has formed a strategic partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature to help advance the Kingdom’s 2060 net-zero targets, and accelerate nature-based climate solutions throughout the Middle East, North Africa and Asia.

The agreement seeks to position Saudi Arabia at the forefront of climate innovation and sustainable economic transformation, and reinforce its expanding role in nurturing the development of entrepreneurs who can create sophisticated environmental technologies on Saudi soil, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The goal is to showcase a distinctly Saudi approach that effectively connects breakthrough innovations with on-the-ground environmental protection and climate responses.

Netzero works with communities to connect afforestation projects with businesses that want to offset their carbon emissions, meet sustainability goals, help restore ecosystems and make a difference for future generations. IUCN is a global environmental network that unites governments, civil society and scientific experts in efforts to conserve nature and promote sustainable development.

Netzero’s founder and CEO, Mohammed Al-Khalid, described the agreement as a watershed moment for the application of Saudi-developed technologies in conservation work. His organization has built cutting-edge digital infrastructure to track environmental impacts, monitor recovery of vegetation, and optimize tree-planting campaigns, he said, resulting in unprecedented transparency in the measurement of outcomes, and improved climate gains.

The partnership will pursue several strategic goals, he added, including the restoration of ecosystems at scale through pioneering nature-based approaches that address climate disruption and rejuvenate native biodiversity; the safeguarding of wildlife and natural habitats by merging intelligent technologies with IUCN’s deep conservation expertise; and the strengthening of local communities through knowledge-sharing initiatives and the development of environmental skills that can promote sustainable livelihoods.

Al-Khalid stressed that the combination of Saudi-engineered environmental technologies with field conservation demonstrates the readiness of the Kingdom to share its technical solutions with the world. Netzero’s digital platforms rank among the region’s pioneering systems in their ability to accurately quantify the effects of carbon, and monitor reforestation efforts through the use of artificial intelligence and geographic data analysis, he added.

Hani El-Shaer, the regional director of IUCN’s Regional Office for West Asia, said the agreement reflects a mutual dedication to the deployment of workable, nature-based solutions that build climate resilience. He added that the pairing of Saudi innovation with global conservation knowledge would produce measurable results in ecosystem recovery, while advancing national and regional environmental agendas.

The Netzero platform was launched through Saudi Arabia’s national Sidra program under the auspices of Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture.