The Gulf Environment & Sustainable Development Forum, Saudi Arabia’s annual environment exhibition and conference, has announced the support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the third year running.

Speaking about the upcoming forum a representative from the UNDP said;

“The UNDP is once again pleased to support the Gulf Environment Forum, which is a key milestone in the events diary for continuing environmental development in the Kingdom as well as the GCC region as a whole. We hope to see many great projects and recommendations as a result of this gathering of environmental specialists, developers and investors.”

The UNDP continued;

“Following the success of the 2010 and 2011 event, the UNDP looks forward to supporting the efforts of this year's event and continuing to establish ties between companies promoting environmental sustainability in the Gulf region.”

The annual exhibition and conference, which is organised by the Presidency of Meteorology & Environment, SENS and BME Global Ltd, is held under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz.

Sponsors confirmed for the growing 2012 event include returning organisations such as; National Commercial Bank, SEPCO and Saudi Asma Environmental Solutions.  A new sponsor for this year is Alwan Establishment, based in Jeddah.

The interest in environmental projects has risen massively over recent years in the region, with flagship projects now well underway including Masdar in the UAE and King Abdullah Economic City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Consultant Nicolai Dobrott of Berlin's Apricum says he expects Saudi Arabia to install 3.5 gigawatts of solar by 2015 – and that the government will implement a policy on renewables by the end of this year.

The GEF conference is due to highlight key economic investment points and critically, the challenges the region faces up to 2016.  Topics this year will focus on Economy, CSR and Green Innovation within all sectors.

The exhibition, which will play host to a number of international suppliers and consultancies of environmental technology, is anticipating another strong year, attracting investors from both the private and public sector.