CAIRO — The first regional forum of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP27), which will be held in Sharm el-Sheikh in November, kicked off Aug. 2 in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, with the aim of encouraging investments in fields related to climate action.

Egypt’s COP27 presidency, in coordination with the United Nations, is seeking to hold five major regional forums, with the aim of “discussing climate projects and investment opportunities with investors, international financing organizations, development banks and other actors, all the while embarking on the execution of climate action projects,” a July 31 statement said.

The first forum on Africa was held in Addis Ababa, which is the seat of the UN Economic Commission for Africa, on Aug. 2-4, under the title, “Towards COP27: Regional Forums on Climate Initiatives to Finance Climate Action and the SDGs.”

According to the statement, the second forum is scheduled for Aug. 25 in Bangkok, Thailand, the headquarters of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. Santiago, Chile, which is the headquarters of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, is scheduled to host the third forum in early September. On Sept. 15, the Lebanese capital, Beirut, which is the seat of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), is to host the fourth forum dedicated to Arab countries. The Egyptian initiative will conclude these forums in Geneva, the seat of the UN Economic Commission for Europe, on Sept. 20.