Ras Al Khaimah Municipality launches Green Public Procurement to reduce environmental impact
The Ras Al Khaimah Municipality held a virtual event to officially launch the green public procurement (GPP) programme of Ras Al Khaimah.
The event revealed newly developed GPP Guidelines. They will support the adoption of sustainable procurement practices in RAK in the coming years, starting with government entities.
The green procurement program has focus to procure products and services with low environmental impact.
The RAK Municipality, through Barjeel – the green building regulations of Ras Al Khaimah – and through the Building Retrofits programme, has been promoting more sustainable buildings. The Public Service Department has also recently engaged in green procurement in multiple projects.
Why GPP guidelines?
Following the success of these initiatives, a specialised team was set up to develop a framework. This framework will ensure the adoption of green criteria in purchase decisions more systematically.
The issuance of the GPP Guidelines by Ras Al Khaimah Municipality comes as a result of
- the study conducted by the team
- the extensive consultation process with stakeholders and green procurement experts.
Going forward, the Department of Finance of Ras Al Khaimah will operate as programme administrator for GPP. The dept will also coordinate the implementation of the programme across the government.
What are the benefits of GPP guidelines?
The director-general of RAK Municipality, HE Munther Mohammed bin Shekar, said: “From the perspective of economic development, buying green also means generating demand for green products and services. This will stimulate the growth of a local eco-system of skilled companies, which will support the economic development of RAK in the long run.
“Today, we are proud to launch the green public procurement guidelines of Ras Al Khaimah from which we expect not only environmental benefits but also tangible, economic benefits.”
He added” “The GPP Guidelines will be applied on a voluntary basis, leveraging the examples of environmental leadership. We expect a positive response from government entities, given their involvement in the design phase of the guidelines.”
The GPP Guidelines include criteria for procurement of frequently purchased product categories, such as
- paper,
- furniture,
- light vehicles,
- AC,
- household appliances,
- carpets, etc.
The criteria are designed to be easily adopted in government tenders.
The Green Public Procurement program is an enabler of the Ras Al Khaimah Energy Efficiency and Renewables (EE&R) Strategy 2040. The strategy established under the patronage of HH Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of RAK. It targets 30% energy savings, 20% water savings, and 20% contribution of electricity from renewable sources by 2040.
The programme contributes to the UAE Green Agenda 2030 and National Climate Change Plan 2017-2050 at a federal level. While at an international level, it supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals. And subsequently the commitments of the UAE towards the Paris Agreement.
The overall framework outlined in the guidelines supports Ras Al Khaimah’s participation in international reporting initiatives for global carbon emission reduction, as it follows the definitions of the greenhouse gas protocol.
