Energy Transition in the Middle East and North Africa Region: Regional Solutions for Climate Change Challenges Amid Economic Sanctions

Abstract

As the world grapples with the urgent priority of transitioning to a net-zero
future, there exists a shared need to make all efforts to reduce anthropogenic
greenhouse gas emissions, mostly caused by burning fossil fuels. The Middle
East and North Africa (MENA) region plays an important role because of its
oil and natural gas output. Additionally, this region has experienced
significant conflict and numerous wars. This article will focus on one of the
many challenges that some key states in the MENA region, with a main focus
on Iran, are facing in their energy transition. Several countries in the MENA
region are or have recently been subject to some form of economic sanctions.
Sanctions appear to have had a material impact on these countries’ abilities to
fulfill their contributions to transitioning to a net-zero economy. Research
suggests that the chief obstacles they face regarding that transition is the lack
of access to the latest technologies, a dearth of financing, limited or often no
direct investments in low carbon industry, diplomatic isolation, and the
concomitant economic volatility caused by sanctions, which in sum, take
away from the financial capacity of a target country to save and invest for the
transition to net zero. Therefore, it is crucial to revisit sanctions laws and
policies, ensuring that they do not hinder the global community from
achieving its climate goals. This article proposes establishing a regional
‘climate savings account’ to serve as a strategic mechanism to balance
geopolitical interests and environmental goals.