The emergence and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing crisis in Ukraine have affected countries worldwide on practically all levels, including the environment. Arab countries, in addition to dealing with the impact of past and ongoing regional conflicts, have not been able to dodge the consequences of these global crises on the environment and the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in relation to food security and climate change.
It is likely that the world and the Arab region will have to withstand the effects of even more pandemics and wars with global magnitude in the future. For this reason, the Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) has dedicated its fourteenth annual report to the impact of pandemics and wars on the environment in Arab countries.
The report focuses on the takeaways of the recent crises in terms of impact on the SDGs, energy transformation, food security, water and financing. It reveals that the emerging global calamities exposed countries in the region to unprecedented challenges, to which most were unprepared to adequately confront and proposes alternative paths to boost resilience.