The Sustainable Energy For All (SE4ALL) initiative was launched by the UN Secretary General in 2011. The initiative contains three objectives which should be achieved by 2030 and which combine the development and the climate change agenda: Ensure universal access to modern energy services, double the rate of improvement in energy efficiency globally, double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.
The UN’s General Assembly has declared 2012 “The International Year of Sustainable Energy for All”. The UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) is to take place in Brazil in June 2012. The objectives of Rio+20 are to secure renewed political commitment for sustainable development, assess the progress made and address new and emerging challenges.
On the 16th of April 2012, the Danish EU Presidency and the EU Commission is hosting a conference on sustainable energy in Brussels (EU Sustainable Energy for All Summit). Among others, the conference is attended by the UN Secretary-General, the President of the EU Commission and the Danish Minister for Development Cooperation.
As EC President Barroso said today on the opening ceremony of the Sustainable Energy Summit: “Sustainable Energy for All” focused on energy access, which is key for global development: today, while one part of the planet lives in the digital era and in the times of digital communication, the other part has still no access to basic electricity, power or energy. Being in the dark every day is the tragic reality of 1.3 bn people in the world today.
Today, I announced a new Commission initiative called “Energising Development.” Its ambitious goal is clear: we want to help provide access to sustainable energy services to 500 million people by 2030. This is a huge objective, but if we work together it can be done. With 1bn Euros invested in global energy projects over the last five years, the EU is already the first global donor in this area.
But we should not rest on our laurels. Therefore, in the framework of “Energising Development” initiative, we will create an EU Technical Assistance Facility, initially in excess of €50 million over the next two years. This will help those developing countries that “opt in” to the UN Sustainable Energy for All initiative and commit to the necessary reforms to catalyze and leverage investment. In fact, the European Union together with its Member States is today the biggest financial contributor to UN and to UN Agencies.
If sustainable development, environment and climate action are truly global issues, so are peace, stability and democracy.”
But how EU and the western world could help those poor people the have electricity and modern technologies in their countries and homes? Nice project example is the EUROSOLAR EuropeAid program which from 2009 brings to South America renewable solar energy by photo-voltaic sets to providing electricity to isolated rural communities villages. Total budget: €36m (originally €30m, of which €6m from program’s 8 beneficiary countries). Bolivia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay and in Perú.
The first EURO-SOLAR Kit started to work in Peru in October 2009 . During February the installation of the first electricity generation equipment was completed in the communities of Quebrada Honda and Morochata. Along with the electrification kit which, in the case of Bolivia, comprises hybrid solar-wind power systems; computers were also supplied together with a projector, multifunction equipment water purifier and a refrigerator.
Sources:
http://eu-un.europa.eu/articles/en/article_12070_en.htm
http://www.eu-un.europa.eu/articles/en/article_12077_en.htm
http://www.sustainableenergyforall.org/
http://eu2012.dk/en/NewsList/April/Week-15/Energy-for-all
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/what/energy/sustainable/se4all_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/where/latin-america/regional-cooperation/euro-solar/publications_en.htm
Related articles
- Sustainable energy for all (one.org)
- EuropeAid hiring slows down (devex.com)
- Sustainable Energy For All: The UN’s Trojan Horse for Corporate Energy Control? (climate-connections.org)
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