A campaign aimed at promoting energy efficiency in residential and public sector buildings in the country shifted gears last week in Lagos, where stakeholders gathered to decide on two key elements of the programme.
L-R: Barbas Jatau of the Federal Ministry of Trade & Investment, Richard Adewunmi of SON and Etiosa Uyigue of the UNDP-GEF Energy Efficiency Programme, at the forum on July 8, 2015
Under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Global Environment Facility (GEF) sponsored Energy Efficiency Programme, participants at a meeting on Wednesday July 8, 2015 reviewed proposed designs of energy labels for end-user electrical appliances. After a long-drawn deliberation, they eventually reached a consensus and agreed on a label.
Similarly, on the following day on Thursday July 9, 2015, a technical committee reviewed and endorsed minimum energy standards for household refrigerating appliances (IEC 62552 series).
“We are integrating energy efficiency into an existing standard,” says Etiosa Uyigue, coordinator of the Programme, adding that the adopted energy labels will be tailored for different appliances.
According to him, the aim is to transform the energy efficiency sector by building confidence in people and developing standards to be utilised by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).
The UNDP Country Director, Pa Lamin Beyai, represented by Muyiwa Odele, submits: “The review meeting is significant because minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) contributes to energy security and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The development of these minimum energy performance standards not only build investors and consumers’ confidence in energy efficient products available in the country, but are also important for large scale sustainable deployment of energy efficient solutions.
Proposed energy label designs for electrical appliances
“The UNDP has in the past successfully partnered with the SON to develop the MEPS for household lighting sector, which are already being enforced with lots of success stories such as considerable improvement in the quality of light bulbs in the Nigerian market.”
The overall objective of the project is to improve the energy efficiency of series of end-use appliances used in residential and public sectors in Nigeria through the introduction of standards and labels and demand-side management programmes.
Besides setting MEPS by using policy and legislative instruments, the project also aims at assisting government in the enforcement of energy efficiency policies and laws – through the setting up of internationally accredited energy efficiency testing centres for light bulbs, air conditioners, refrigerators and other appliances.
While supporting processes and programmes that will upscale the penetration of energy saving equipment, the project is creating awareness to change behaviour and to build stakeholder capacity to imbibe energy efficiency best practices for national development.
Uyigue lists some of the outcomes of the programme to include:
Draft National Energy Efficiency Policy: The draft National Energy Efficiency Policy (NEEP) was developed and presented to over 300 national stakeholders. The NEEP was developed under the project in partnership with the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN).
Minimum Energy Performance Standard for Lighting: The project working in collaboration with SON has developed the MEPS for CFLs. The draft MEPS for lighting has since been approved by the Nigerian Standard Board and it is now enforceable in Nigeria.
Lighting Performance Testing Procedure & Infrastructure: Two complete set of light testing analysis equipment were procured and installed in the laboratories of SON and the National Centre for Energy Efficiency and Conservation (NCEEC). The testing facilities will enhance the ability of SON to enforce the newly approved lighting standard.
Draft Energy Efficiency Training Manual: The draft Energy Efficiency Training Manual was developed under the project and it is being reviewed to position it as an acceptable teaching document used in tertiary institutions. Subsequently, the draft training manual has been sent to the National Universities Commission (NUC) for consideration as training module used in Nigerian universities.
Inauguration of Baseline Studies: Several baseline studies were inaugurated and implemented for monitoring and evaluating the impacts of the EE interventions.
MEPS for Refrigerators: In collaboration with SON, the project has supported the process of developing minimum energy performance standard (MEPS) for refrigerators.
Testing Equipment for Refrigerators: Energy efficient testing chamber for refrigerator procured for SON for the enforcement of MEPS of refrigerators.
Nigeria Lighting Compliance Study: Inaugurated the Nigeria Lighting Compliance Study to access the quality of lighting products in the Nigerian market.
With increasing number of displaced persons and emergency situations caused by insecurity and other natural disasters in the country, the NOTAGAIN Campaign is particularly worried about the plight of women and children during such emergencies.
Women and children in a IDPs camp. Photo credit: channelstv.com
Operated by the Development Communications Network (DevComs), the NOTAGAIN Campaign aims at ending needless maternal deaths.
During the last five years, many Nigerians have been subjected to various forms of displacements as a result of communal clashes, natural disaster, conflict, violence and insurgency by the Boko Haram group in North-Eastern Nigeria.
According to a release by the Population Information and Communication Bureau (PICB), Federal Ministry of Information, to observe this year’s World Population Day, Nigerians in Kogi, Rivers, Lagos, Sokoto, Taraba, Bayelsa, and Anambra states experienced emergency situations in 2012 when flooding ravaged most coastal communities in the states. The situation was said to have resulted in thousands of people displaced and relocated to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps.
In addition, insurgency and terrorism are now contributing to worsening emergencies worldwide while Boko Haram has, over the years, unleashed mayhem on almost all parts of the country, especially the North East.
The NOTAGAIN Campaign team believes that these displacements have negative impact on the health and wellbeing of the most vulnerable group – women and children, who are the most affected, as pregnant women have been seen delivering in open places devoid of medical facilities.
Speaking on the effect of insecurity on the health of mothers, the Coordinator, Accountability for Maternal Newborn and Child Health in Nigeria (AMHIN), Dr. Aminu Magashi, said, “Reports have shown that some of the women are pregnant while some are breastfeeding. Coupled with the poor habitat and inadequate medical services, these women are vulnerable to complications of pregnancy such as bleeding, infections and preterm delivery due to emotional trauma.”
Similarly, the Executive Director, Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre, Dr. Abiola Akiyode, said, “Emergencies and situations of displacement heighten the vulnerability of women and girls. Gender-based violence including rape, sexual servitude, unwanted pregnancies, coerced contraception, and abortions are the daily reality.”
Thus, the time to ensure quality access to reproductive health care and rights for all Nigerians is now. The World Population Day 2015 brings an opportunity to remember the most vulnerable group of the population – women and children, who have been displaced from their natural home and forced to live in emergency situations.
“There is a strong need for these services to be made available to women and girls in emergencies and those displaced in camps or outside camps at every stage of the emergency situation.”
Also, Nigerian government has been called upon to provide the needed health care for the displaced while rebuilding the health infrastructures in the destroyed communities.
Dr. Magashi said, ”I call on the federal and state governments where IDPs exist to establish mobile clinics that visit the centers regularly, provide free drugs to women and children as well as ensure good water system.”
Furthermore, the NOTAGAIN Campaign, led by Development Communications (DevComs) Network and WARDC, through its Media Officer, Mr. Ayodele Adesanmi, maintains that the responsiveness and sensitivity of the government to provide basic health needs for its citizens could avert needless deaths of mothers and children during emergencies.
“We believe that pregnant women and children should be adequately catered for because of their vulnerability,” he said.
It will be recalled that the National Health Act was signed into law in the year 2014 by the past administration and Nigerians are already looking forward to its implementation. The Programme Manager, Health Reform Foundation of Nigeria (HERFON), Dr. Adeleke Oluwaseun, said, “This law guarantees Nigerians the right to access quality health services through primary healthcare centres, which are the closest to the people by making available basic funds that would provide for basic minimum package of health services including emergency care, treatment to pregnant women, the elderly and immunisation for children.”
Scientists who met last week in Paris at a major international gatheringhave said that humanity must achieve a state of zero greenhouse gas emissions by the end of this century in order to hold the global average temperature rise to a maximum 2° Celsius.
Laurence Tubiana, French Ambassador for the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris (COP 21). Photo credit: euractiv.fr
In a joint statement at the end of the “Our Common Future Under ClimateChange” conference, the scientists said the world needed to reach along-term vision of climate neutrality and seize the obvious benefits of clean energy and sustainable development in order to stay below this 2° defence line against the worst impacts of climate change.
Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention onClimate Change (UNFCCC), welcomed their closing statement and said:“The world’s leading researchers on climate have underlined the crucial importance of nations focusing on a long term goal–call it zero emissions, net zero or climate neutrality. The overwhelming consensus is that Paris 2015 needs to send an unequivocal signal that the world will take a pathtowards a steep and deep decline in greenhouse gas pollution by the second half of the century.”
The leading scientists’ call comes less than five months before the UNclimate change conference in Paris, at which governments will conclude a new universal climate change agreement which aims to put the world on a firm pathway towards an early peaking of global emissions, followed by a very rapid decline towards a net zero goal.
The joint statement from the conference said:“Because warming from carbon dioxide persists for many centuries, any upper limit on warming requires carbon dioxide emissions to fall eventually to zero. A two in three probability of holding warming to 2°C or less will require a budget that limits future carbon dioxide emissions to about 900billion tons, roughly 20 times annual emissions in 2014. To limit warming to 2°C, emissions must be zero or even negative by the end of the 21st century.”
The Chairman of the Scientific Committee of the Paris meeting, and directorof the US Carnegie Institution’s Department of Global Ecology Chris Field said:“We are moving to a post-carbon era, where climate change mitigation and adaptation are combined with goals to build a sustainable future”.
Laurence Tubiana, French Amabassador for the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris (COP 21), said:“Scientists are working, with many partners, to develop long-term pathwaysat the scale of cities, economic sectors like agriculture and nationaleconomies, with strong focus on making solutions operational. We need COP 21 to be the political answer to that work, and show that the transition to a decarbonized and climate-resilient economy is not just necessary, but also that it is feasible (politically, economically and technologically); and even beyond that, that it is inevitable, and underway.
Earlier in the conference, International Energy Agency Chief EconomistFatih Birol noted that not only visions, but specific targets will be critical to send the signal for greenhouse gas emitters like the energysector to meet ambitious goals, including an emissions peak in 2020.
Around 2,000 scientists from almost 100 countries attended the Paris scienceconference, which showcased evidence-based ways to both reduce emissions and build resilient economies.
An historic agreement to Build, Own and Operate (BOO) West Africa’s first utility-scale solar power plant has been signed by Norwegian company Scatec Solar and the Malian Ministry of Energy and Water and Electricité du Mali (EDM), the electricity utility of Mali. To be located near the ancient city of Segou in South-East Mali, 240 kms from Bamako, the 33 MW solar project is being developed in partnership with IFC InfraVentures and the local developer Africa Power 1.
Power plant construction in Rwanda
Speaking at the occasion in Bamako, the Malian Minister of Energy and Water, Mr. Mamadou Frankaly Keita, said: “This landmark agreement signals the government’s commitment to meet the nation’s growing energy demand and to provide clean, renewable and affordable energy to our people.”
The agreements include a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) between EDM and Segou Solaire SA, the local project company controlled by Scatec Solar, for the delivery of solar power over the next 25 years. The PPA with the utility is complemented by a Concession Contract with the Government of Mali, granting license to Segou Solaire to operate.
With this PPA, Scatec strengthens its position as the leading, integrated solar IPP (Independent Power Producer) in Africa. The Oslo-headquartered company’s CEO, Raymond Carlsen, says: “This project is another great milestone for Scatec Solar. After several years of development efforts in the region, we can now move forward with the first utility-scale solar plant in West Africa. The Malian Authorities have demonstrated decisive will to tackle the nagging issue of power supply.”
Scatec Solar (‘SSO) will own 50 percent of the power plant and World Bank’s project development fund, IFC InfraVentures will hold 32.5 percent, while the local project development company, Africa Power 1, headed by Dr Ibrahim Togola, will hold 17.5 percent. Scatec Solar will construct the plant, and in addition provide operation and maintenance services after the plant is connected to the grid.
“One of the pillars of the World Bank’s Country Assistance Strategy for Mali is to increase access to energy, a development fundamental. IFC InfraVentures’ partnership with Scatec Solar and Africa Power 1 helps advance this strategy through Scatec Segou, part of a series of renewable energy projects we are developing in the country,” said Alain Ebobisse, Global Head of IFC InfraVentures.
Dr Ibrahim Togola, the chairman of Africa Power 1 SA and General Administrator of Scatec Solar West Africa, says: “Today’s event is historic because Mali now becomes the first country to install the largest solar grid-connected power plant in the region. This high profile joint-venture in which Malian citizens participate will serve as a model to launch the solar era in West Africa”.
Annual production from the 33 MW solar power plant is estimated to be 60,000 Megawatts hour (MWh). The ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) solar plant will deploy approximately 130,000 PV modules on a fixed tilt system and will connect to an existing transmission line. This will provide clean and affordable energy to a country in dire need for more power generation capacity to support further economic growth. The power generated from the plant represents five percent of Mali’s total electricity consumption, equal to the electricity consumption of 60,000 households.
During the construction phase, the project will provide 200 local jobs. As part of Scatec’s corporate philosophy, special emphasis will be put on transferring technical expertise to the local community.
In an era of climate change concerns, the 33 MW Segou power plant is an important initiative to reduce carbon emissions by about 46,000 tons once completed. Scatec Solar and EDM will jointly register the project with the United Nations CDM (Clean Development Mechanism) under Scatec Solar’s programme for solar projects in Africa.
The project with a total cost of Euro 52 million is to be financed through 45% senior project finance debt. IFC InfraVentures will arrange the Debt for a total amount of Euro 23 million. Further, the project has already been granted a concessional loan that will cover 30% of the Capex from Climate Investment Fund through the program “Scaling Up Renewable energy in Low Income Countries Programme” (SREP). The remaining 25% is provided as equity by the project partners. Financial close is expected before the end of this year.
As parts of efforts to build a mass movement for strong, democratically-controlled water systems across Africa and the world, the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) will on 11 and 12 August 2015 host a Lagos Water Summit themed “Our Water, Our Right.”
Access to water has posed a challenge in Lagos, where officials are set to embark on its privatisation
The summit, co-hosted by Corporate Accountability International, Public Services International (PSI), Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Service Employees (AUPCTRE), Transnational Institute, and the Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD) and Freedom from Debt Coalition, will build on collective actions in demanding the right to water.
Leading campaigners from Nigeria, other countries across Africa, and countries around the world will share lessons learned and strategies to move the world toward universal access and democratic control of water.
The summit will draw from activists’ struggles against corporate control of water in countries like the Philippines, Indonesia and Ghana. Participants will have opportunities to teach and learn from one another, building their expertise crafting in effective campaign tactics, amplifying the movement’s voice in the public sphere and media, and creating real solutions to address water needs such as public-public partnerships. Through these sessions, participants will hone the tools they need to stop water privatisation, cut through the misleading marketing of “public-private partnerships” (PPPs) and confront international institutions like the World Bank, that drive this trend towards PPPs.
The summit also informs next steps for the growing network of organisations protecting the human right to water across the African continent and globally and will escalate the campaign to stop water privatisation in Lagos.
ERA/FoEN is working with the labour community, international partners, and the people of Lagos to build democratic water governance and support in rejecting corporate control of water in Lagos. The accelerating campaign in Lagos is part of a growing movement for strong, democratically controlled water systems across Africa and the world, demanding that water be managed as a public good and fundamental human right.
The global water justice movement which ERA/FoEN is part of, is building momentum worldwide, from the unfolding remunicipalisation in Indonesia to water profiteer Veolia losing contracts and investors like the World Bank’s private arm.
The Green Climate Fund has agreedon 13 new finance partners but drew fire from campaign groups for including Deutsche Bank, a major coal investor.
Hela Cheikhrouhou, Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund. Photo credit: gettyimages.com
During the GCF board’s four-day meeting that held recently in Songdo, South Korea, it chose 20 accredited entities, tasked with submitting proposals for funding as well as channelling and leveraging tens of billions of dollars to poorer nations to help them tackle climate change.
Most of the partners are intergovernmental banks and agencies including the EBRD and Inter-American Development Bank, but Deutsche Bank was notably the only private institution chosen.
Deutsche Bank’s approval was criticised by civil society groups due to its heavy involvement in financing coal projects and record on human rights but business observers said such institutions would be needed to tap investors for further finance.
“The GCF needs to change direction away from accrediting controversial big banks that are heavily invested in fossil fuels and thus actually exacerbating climate change,” said 21 of the groups ina statement.
But Abyd Karmali of US bank BAML, one of four active GCF board observers, disagreed with the criticism.
“The GCF needs global banks as partners if it is to succeed in mobilising climate finance via mainstream capital markets,” he said.
First Projects
The GCF has around $5.5 billion of $10.2 billion pledged mainly by rich developed nations, with the rest expected to come by year-end.
It aims to submit to its board “some initial projects” to approve for funding at its November meeting, but last month GCF head Hela Cheikhrouhou said only a small fraction of the 120 received to date looked “promising”.
The fund will prioritise projects that are not adequately supported by existing climate finance mechanisms, in particular for cities, land management and the resilience of small island states.
Though the fund is required to split 50-50 its cash between adaptation and mitigation, observers expect carbon-cuttingCDM projects and Programmes of Activities (PoAs) to apply and receive at least a small share of the money.
Next Projects
The board approved a $200 million pilot phase that would fund up to 10 projects via test procedures for allowing national bodies to approve.
At least four would have to be from countries classed as ‘least developing’, small island developing states or African.
“This ‘enhanced direct access’ is intended to devolve decision making to national and sub national entities, which could also include private sector entities like commercial banks in country,” said Karmali.
The GCF will launch a request for proposal (RFP) process inviting projects to bid early next year.
Energy, clean energy has just reached Bamdzeng and Kingomen villages in the North West of Cameroon and the lives of the villagers might never be the same again but the dawn of renewable energy could just be a curse for Africa that is endowed with deposits of fossil fuels.
Ardo Abdou Karimu admires light from solar power at his home in Kingomen village. Photo credit: Arison TAMFU
It is 10:31 pm in Bamdzeng village in the North West region of Cameroon and a pregnant woman in critical labour has just arrived the Bamdzeng Health Centre. She is breathless as nurses rush her to the newly created delivery room of the centre.
“We trekked for more than one hour to reach here. The health centre in our village cannot perform risky delivery at night because there is no electricity there,” says the distressed husband, impatiently waiting for his new born baby. Things moved faster than expected. Nurses quickly switched on the lights, started the delivery process and, in less than three hours, the cry of a baby is heard. She is delivered of a healthy boy and she is in good shape.
“Just few weeks ago, delivery at this time of the day was impossible. We were using torches and lamps to deliver pregnant women and, in most cases, it was a deadly venture. The arrival of electricity here has changed everything,” says a delighted Rahina Tou Dzemoyua, assistant director of the centre.
A few kilometers away, Ardo Abdou Karimu, a respected community figure of Kingomen village, reflects on how electrification of the village has changed the lives of the villagers.
Solar panels on rooftop of Bamdzeng village Health Centre. Photo credit: Arison TAMFU
“The children now do their school homework under a solar light at night and they are performing very well in school. We charge our phone batteries easily and we are able to make calls all the time to our relatives and business partners. Importantly, our standard of living has increased considerably,” says Abdou Karimu.
Abdou and Rahina remember with a sense of humour the first day solar panels arrived the village.
“It was like a miracle. They came and placed them on the rooftop of my house and in the evening we had light. My children thought it was witchcraft. We only discovered that it`s night time by 8pm because there was light everywhere,” Abdou recalls hysterically.
“It was like darkness has been defeated by light. I could not imagine that the sun could be used for electricity,” Rahina says.
“The project was born out of the need to improve the livelihoods of the people, alleviate poverty and fight against climate change. We are moving to a new world now,” says Stephen Njodzeka Ndzerem, development analyst and managing director of Shumas Cameroon, the organisation that brought renewable energy to the two villages. Shumas works in special consultation status with the UN economic and social council (ECOSOC).
Solar power charging phones and other electrical appliances of villagers in Bamdzeng. More than 100 phones are charged everyday. Photo credit: Arison TAMFU
The two villages, now using hydroelectricity, solar and wind power represent a new form of energy that has come to stay and is gaining ground gradually and surely across the African continent – renewable energy.
“At the moment, the continent is witnessing a lot of green revolution and renewable energy projects being initiated. There also seems to be a positive shift in mentality towards renewable energy amongst African Governments,” says Mithika Mwenda of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), a civil society organisation defending the position of Africa under the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Renewable energy is energy generated from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat which are naturally replenished.
The sun shines almost daily throughout most of sub-Saharan Africa, but most of the population – more than 620 million people — lives in the dark, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). This extreme energy poverty in a region so rich in radiant sunlight presents both a paradox and an opportunity for a big part of the solution in powering Africa. Statistics from IEA indicate that Africa currently derives less than two per cent of its energy mix from renewable sources.
Wind turbines in Egypt. Photo credit: CDKN
Vaccine for climate change
Ardo Abdou Karimu is pleased that electricity has finally reached his village, yet he is very worried that things are turning upside-down for him and his family.
“The climate is changing. Rains come and go at any time. We don’t know precisely when to plant our crops and when to stop. Last year we almost went hungry because rains delayed a lot. Water is becoming scarce. We can`t feed our cows because green grass is disappearing,” he laments.
Abdou`s worries are familiar across the African continent where droughts, erratic rainfall, floods are affecting millions. Scientists predict that climate change could mean even longer, more unpredictable seasons and more extreme weather events and unprecedented rising sea levels. World leaders agree that there is urgent need to provide a therapy for climate change.
“Unlike some problems that we face, this one already has a ready-made solution provided by mankind that is staring us in the face: The solution to climate change is energy policy,” U.S Secretary of State John Kerry said during the last UN climate change conference dubbed COP20, in December 2014 in Lima, Peru.
That energy policy according to scientists is a switch to renewable energy. The main scientific authority on climate change, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), has underscored the fact that renewable energy is one of the major ways of curing climate change because it is clean and does not emit dangerous greenhouse gases into atmosphere.
In addition to its importance to climate change, there’s another compelling reason to develop renewable resources in Africa: rapidly growing energy demand. As acute as Africa’s energy poverty is today, it could become even worse without aggressive efforts to develop more resources. IEA predicts that even if a projected one billion people gain access to electricity by the year 2040, rapid population growth will mean that some 530 million people will still live without it. And as Africa shifts from a primarily rural society to an increasingly urban one, more of its people will be living middle class lifestyles that require more electricity in their homes and workplaces. With a growing number of people seeking to light their homes and generate power for businesses, farms and manufacturing, the squeeze on resources will become unsustainable unless renewable resources become part of the mix according to IEA.
Abdou Karimu is shocked to hear that a major solution to his climate problem is the solar energy that has been provided him free of charge.
He wonders: “Why don`t they provide this kind of energy everywhere? It is very good for us in the village. People come every day from several villages asking me how they can have the energy. Why is the government delaying?”
Naïve as he may sound but he poses a key problem that currently divides the world in climate change negotiations. What Abdou does not know is that renewable energy means good and bad news for Africa.
Goodbye fossil fuels?
Here is the good news: Africa’s extractive industry is booming. Countries across the continent more than ever before are now endowed with fossil fuel deposits. Fossil fuels consist of gas used for cooking and heating, oil that is mainly used for transport and coal used to generate electricity. Six of the top 10 global discoveries in the oil and gas sectors in 2013 were made in Africa, with more than 500 companies currently exploring deposits on the continent according to PwC, the world’s leading advisor to the energy industry.
“These discoveries mean a lot for Africa. It means money; trillions of dollars. It means economic growth, job creation and fundamentally poverty alleviation. It will revamp the continent,” says economist, Dr. Emmanuel Mumfor.
Here is the bad news: Fossil fuels are a threat to the existence of mankind. Scientists agree that emissions from fossil fuels account for approximately 60 percent of the dangerous greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere causing global warming. The biggest emitters are China and America. Africa has contributed very minimal to global warming but IPCC has made it clear that 80 per cent of known global fossil fuel reserves would need to remain unexploited for the international community to reach its declared goal of staying below a maximum two degrees Celsius world average temperature rise. In brief: stop fossil fuels and move to renewable sources of energy.
“What this mean is that Africa`s dreams of exploiting and obtaining gains from the oil deposits will be shattered. Essentially this should be a problem for developed countries that have been emitting these greenhouse gases for decades. Africa needs to equally grow its economy by exploiting the fossil fuels,” says Dr. Mumfor.
During COP20, John Kerry stressed that the call to get rid of fossil fuels was meant for all nations without exception.
“Of course industrialised countries have to play a major role in reducing emissions, but that doesn’t mean that other nations are just free to go off and repeat the mistakes of the past and that they somehow have a free pass to go to the levels that we’ve been at where we understand the danger. Now, I know this is difficult for developing nations but we have to remember that today more than half of global emissions are coming from developing nations,” Kerry said.
President Obama has committed the United States to the goal of generating 20% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. China has increased their power generation from renewables from really nothing 10 years ago – and now it’s 25% according to IEA.
Africa`s position
In December in Paris this year, a high level UN climate change conference will bring world leaders together to decide on the right path to tackle climate change. It is at this conference that the world will take a final and legally-binding stand on energy choices, amongst other things. Already, Africa is making its position clear.
“We categorically reject the idea that Africa has to choose between growth and low-carbon development. Africa needs to utilise all of its energy assets in the short term, while building the foundations for a competitive, low-carbon energy infrastructure,” says Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General and Chair of the Africa Progress Panel.
“But Africa has enormous potential for cleaner energy. Unlocking Africa’s clean energy potential can drive growth and create jobs. Africa can grow and show the way for the rest of the world by gradually replacing fossil fuels with renewable sources and embracing a judicious, dynamic energy mix,” he adds.
Efforts to move to renewable are generally referred to as mitigation but Africa also wants adaptation, that is, those activities that make people, ecosystems and infrastructure less vulnerable to the impacts of climate change to be given priority.
“Africa is highlighting the need for mitigation target and also multilateral legally-binding agreement that will ensure that the objective of the emission reduction will be achieved, finances secured, technology transferred and means of implementation. Africa also wants to ensure that adaptation is fully considered and given the same priority as mitigation because for us in Africa adaptation is the key priority in the 2015 agreement. That is why Africa will not sign any Paris agreement that will not include its demands,” says Nagmeldin Goutbi Elhassan, Chairman of the African Group of Negotiators under the UNFCCC.
Stephen Ndzerem says bringing renewable energy to Bamdzeng and Kingomen was a difficult task.
“We lacked finance and technology and the technicians.” That alone signals a main problem for the continent. Switching to renewables requires money, lots of it and technology and capacity building.
“We are looking forward to getting the flow of know-how and financial resources,” says Dr. Khaled Fahmy African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) President and Minister of Environment of Egypt. African civil society is quite categorical.
“And the finances, technology, capacity building and the rest must come from those responsible for emitting gases into the air. They need to lead the mitigation efforts,” adds Mithika of PACJA.
John Kerry disagrees: “No single country, not even the United States, can solve this problem or foot this bill alone. It is literally impossible”
So, at the end of the day, sadly Abdou and millions like him that are experiencing the adverse consequences of climate change will have to wait for a while, a long long while before a concrete solution is achieved. The Paris conference promises to be extremely controversial.
“Future generations will surely judge these leaders not by principles they set out in communiqués but by the actions they took to eradicate poverty, build shared prosperity and protect our children’s children from climate disaster. The global climate moment can be Africa’s moment to lead the world,” says Kofi Annan.
One of the environmental problems confronting developing countries is inadequate waste management system particularly in urban centres with huge population and the most common means to dispose of the waste is through landfill.
The MRF facility. Photo credit: vanguardngr.com
Because of its nature, landfill leads to the conversion of the organic waste to biogas, containing about 50 per cent methane, a very active greenhouse gas that leads to global warming.
In Lagos, Nigeria for instance with a population of more than 17 million and daily waste generation of 11,000 metric tonnes, waste is dispose at landfill sites located across the metropolis particularly in Olushosun, Solus I and II, among others.
But the introduction of a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) recently by the Lagos State government and West Africa Energy Company, many believe, will further assist the state to reduce its carbon foot print through the MRF.
MRF, according to Wikipedia, is a specialised plant that receives, separates and prepares recyclable materials for marketing to end-user manufacturers.
The facility, the first of its kind in Nigeria, was built on closed Solous I dumpsite along the LASU-Iyana Iba Road, Igando in Alimosho Local Government Area of the state under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement of Built, Operate, Manage and Transfer – with a 12-year tenure at a total cost of N1.3 billion.
Conceived in 2012, the facility has the capacity to receive about 130 waste trucks per day and compress more than 2,000 metric tonnes of waste out of the 11,000 tonnes generated per day.
Essentially, the MRF is expected to provide support to the manufacturing sector through the provision of waste off-takers such as plastics, papers, metals and others that may lead to reduction in cost of production and generation of employment.
Part of the long term projection of the deal is to expand the factory to usher in its next phase where more refuse will be needed in order to produce heat for electricity generation while the third phase would be compositing and the production of fertilizer to maintain lawns, parks, gardens and other green areas across the city.
Former Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, disclosed that the facility’s function was to recover solid waste materials, recycle them for reuse and conservation, adding that, in doing so, Lagos was only joining the rest of the world by having the recovery facility.
He went further, “The whole world is recycling, the whole world is reusing, the whole world is conserving. So nothing really goes to waste in any significant proportion. So that is what we are signing on, we are joining the whole world by having this recovery facility to recycle our wastes and turn them into wealth.
“So from a state that could not manage refuse, we have moved to a state that needs refuse,” he said.
The Chief Executive Officer, West Africa Energy Group, Mr. Paul O’Callaghan, while giving a brief on the project, said that the site where the facility was built used to be a borrow pit where piles of waste were dumped.
“It is our mission at West Africa ENRG that in partnership with Lagos State and the people of Lagos, that by 2020, zero waste will go to the landfill, helping to make Lagos the truly beautiful city that it is,” he said.
Mr. O’Callaghan stated that the facility would process more than 2,000 metric tonnes of waste per day and added that the staff strength sourced from the local community would increase from 120 to 350 skilled and unskilled workers.
He explained that the idea of the factory was conceived in 2012, adding that from then till now the idea has been turned into a factory that has the capacity to take 130 Private Sector Participation (PSP) compactor truckloads of refuse employing over 120 people at the first phase with the prospect to employ 300 in the later phases.
Executive Director, Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADev Nigeria), Leslie Adogame, said the compression to bails is in form of one product only before reuse, then it is a sound method environmentally.
Former Environment Commissioner in the state, Mr. Tunji Bello, said that the establishment of the resource recovery facility was a demonstration of the state government’s resolve to foster a clean, healthy and sustainable environment for the wellbeing of the citizenry.
Bello commended LAWMA and West Africa Energy for the laudable project, which he said would be a reference point in solid waste management in the country. He further revealed that the MRF, when fully operational, “is expected to provide support to the manufacturing sector through the provision of waste off-takers such as plastics, papers, metals etc, leading to reduction in cost of production and generation of employment to our teaming youths”.
He equally highlighted the importance of the MRF in the recently adopted policy on climate change adaptation and mitigation plan of the state. This, he said, would be achieved through the reduction in the carbon footprint of the state.
An efficient, renewable-based energy system could save the island nationup to US$25 billion over the next 15 years
Executive Director of Climate Change and Viceminister of Energy Ernesto Vilalta, Minister of Energy and Mines Antonio Isa Conde, Worldwatch Climate and Energy Director Alexander Ochs, and Secretary of State and Vice-President of the National Council for Climate Change Omar Ramírez
The Worldwatch Institute has presented analyses and recommendations to government officials and energy stakeholders to support a transition to a sustainable energy system in the Dominican Republic. The presentation was made during the week at the Energy Ministry in Santo Domingo.
Minister for Energy and Mines Dr. Antonio Isa Conde, Vice Minister of Energy Ernesto Vilalta, Secretary of State and Vice-President of the National Council for Climate Change Omar Ramirez, and other high-ranking governmental officials met with Worldwatch’s Alexander Ochs, Director of Climate and Energy at Worldwatch and the director of the study, to receive the report, titled:Harnessing the Dominican Republic’s Sustainable Energy Resources.
Representatives from the Ministry and stakeholders in the energy sector were then briefed on the social, economic, and environmental benefits of transitioning to an efficient, renewable-based energy system.
According to the report, transitioning to an electricity system powered 85 percent by renewables can decrease the average cost of electricity in the Dominican Republic by 40 percent by 2030 compared to 2010. Such an ambitious pathway to renewable energy would improve the safety and reliability of the island nation’s energy supply. It also would create up to 12,500 additional jobs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Dominican electricity sector to a mere 3 million tons annually, all while making power generation in the country more resilient to the impacts of climate change and reducing local air and water pollution.
The Dominican Republic depends on fossil fuel imports for 86 percent of its electricity needs, a reliance that brings enormous economic and environmental vulnerabilities and costs. The country spends up to a tenth of its gross domestic product on fossil fuel imports and spent US$1 billion on subsidies in 2011 to keep electricity rates more affordable. Transmission and distribution losses remain very high, at 32 percent, leading to significant financial losses for the Dominican power system. Heavy reliance on fossil fuels also results in high local pollution and healthcare costs and contributes to global climate change.
“Transitioning to a sustainable system is in the country’s best long-term interest,” says Ochs “This Roadmap provides decision makers and stakeholders in the Dominican Republic with the technical, socioeconomic, financial, and policy analysis needed to guide the country’s further transition to an electricity system that works.”
“The study demonstrates that an alternative pathway exists, one that is socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable,” says Ochs. “Together with our partners on the island, we have proven that a power system built on the efficient distribution and competent use of the country’s vast available renewable resources is the only smart way forward for the Dominican Republic.”
Improving power generation efficiency and reducing grid losses – of which are far short of international standards – are a first step to reducing electricity prices for consumers, the report finds. The lowest-cost ways to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in the country include installing efficient lighting controls in new commercial buildings, switching from incandescent light bulbs to LEDs and investing in more-efficient electronics in the commercial and residential sectors, and replacing fuel oil plants with natural gas-fired plants. Even with improvements in efficiency, however, new power capacity will still be needed to meet the country’s needs.
If grid strengthening measures are implemented, renewable energy can reliably meet up to 85 percent of the Dominican Republic’s electricity demand while still lowering energy costs. Of the possible renewable installed capacity, the majority (85 percent) could be met with solar (4,708 megawatts) and wind (4,205 megawatts) by 2030, according to the most ambitious scenario presented in the report. The rest would come from small hydropower and bagasse.
Renewable energy technologies are already fully competitive with conventional power solutions, even if so-called “externalities” are not accounted for, according to Worldwatch’s electricity cost modeling. Moreover, “the social and economic case for renewables becomes even stronger once the very real air and water pollution costs, as well as related health costs of fossil fuel generation, are included,” says Ochs. “Add climate change to the equation, and the rationale behind clean modern energy technologies becomes an economic no-brainer.”
Distributed generation—- producing power where it is consumed, such as using rooftop solar systems—- can greatly reduce grid losses. It is also more resilient than centralised fossil fuel generation to climate change impacts, such as hurricanes, inland flooding, or droughts. Renewable energy sources—- particularly distributed systems—- are also the only feasible long-term solution to provide affordable electricity to the 4 percent of Dominicans who live in remote areas without any access to the power grid.
The report provides detailed geographic and temporal analysis of the country’s strong solar and wind resources. It demonstrates how a good weather forecasting system and a reliable, modernised grid allow for both reliable production and system protection in the case of extreme weather events.
The largest hurdle is the upfront costs of such a system change. Building up enough renewable energy capacity to power 85 percent of Dominican electricity would require investments of around US$78 billion. However, the switch to renewables is much more affordable than any scenario that relies on conventional energy sources, including installing, operating, and fueling fossil fuel-based power plants. Total savings to the country in the highest renewable scenario (85 percent) is US$25 billion by 2030. This would free up significant public money over the next 15 years to spend on other pressing social and economic concerns.
The Roadmap makes concrete suggestions for building both financial and human capacities to make the sustainable energy pathway a reality. The suggestions aim to improve the investment environment for public and private as well as domestic and international financing.
To speed the energy transition, the report recommends that the Dominican Republic make renewable energy an overarching development priority, rallying key governmental and non-governmental actors behind a clean, independent, affordable, and reliable energy vision. Creating a new Ministry of Energy and Mines in July 2013 was a strong first step toward mainstreaming the country’s myriad energy-related resources. The Roadmap outlines additional concrete finance and policy recommendations to strengthen the investment environment for renewables and to allow the energy sector to follow the best path forward based on conclusions from the report’s modeling and analysis.
“A paradigm shift is happening in the Dominican Republic, and our Roadmap will further accelerate it,” says Ochs. “The country’s government, private industry, and civil society actors have come to see the important role of energy reform in reducing electricity costs, bolstering the national economy, creating social opportunity, and contributing to a healthier environment.”
“The country is now at a crucial point where it must implement targeted measures in order to achieve the full benefits of a sustainable energy system for generations to come.”
As part of government’s effort to provide affordable housing units, the Ogun State Housing Corporation in collaboration with Shelter Afrique has concluded plans to provide a housing estate valued at N2 billion.
Gov Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State
The estate, which will be located at Kemta-Idi-Aba in Abeokuta, will house civil servants who are contributors to the National Housing Fund Scheme.
The Corporation’s general manager, Arc. Jumoke Akinwunmi, made this known recently during a meeting with the Resident Regional Representative of Shelter Afrique, Mr. Oumar Diop, at Plainfiled Estate, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
She commended Shelter Afrique for the partnership, assuring the outfit of government’s cooperation on the project.
Mr Diop, in his response, said that Shelter Afrique was willing and committed to make available the sum of N2 billion in order to realise the project, which is aimed at providing affordable shelter for workers who had not benefited from the previous housing schemes in the state.
Diop maintained that the project would avail workers the opportunity to have their own houses, saying that the gesture would in turn boost their productivity.
Shelter Afrique, with headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya and a regional office in Abuja, belongs to African countries and the African Development Bank (ADB). It is a commercial institution that works with banks and other specialised financial intermediaries to promote home ownership.
