Africa

The Indian government launched the Saubhagya scheme in 2017 and aims to provide electricity across the entire country. Credit: Stella Paul/IPS

By Stella Paul
NEW DEHLI, Oct 31 2018 (IPS)

Even in remote and faraway places such as Andamans and Nicobar and Lakshadweep, islands off the coast of India, the government is keen to provide electricity across the entire country.

Last year it launched the Saubhagya scheme, which is about providing energy access to all. While the government is making progress, “it would be good to replace current diesel-based electrons with renewable and storage-based solutions. GGGI has already demonstrated this in Indonesia and proved that such shifts are commercially viable,” says Shantanu Gotmare, head of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) India office.

GGGI is a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organisation that works in developing countries helping them achieve green growth through greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction, creation of green jobs, wider access to clean energy, sustainable public transport, improved sanitation, and sustainable waste management.

In an exclusive interview with IPS, Gotmare speaks about innovative ways that India can curve its carbon footprint and achieve a greener economy.

He says another innovative way for India to become 100 percent electricity-capable is through a smart meter rollout.

“Although there is money, there is no proper structuring right now. A properly structured smart meter rollout can help save a lot of electricity waste through improved monitoring and data capture, automatic billing and efficient communication, and the saved power can be used to electrify several households. This is another area where GGGI can help the government,” he says.

Excerpts of the interview follow:

Shantanu Gotmare, head of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) India office.

IPS: Is there a place where this smart meter rollout has taken shape?

A: At present, it is a priority for the government of India. India is committed to renewable energy and the day is not very far when people will see renewable energy in their neighborhood, but in a country where access to energy is still an issue, probably this still has to wait for a few years.

IPS: The latest IPCC report has just been made public and it states that the world only has 12 more years to keep the rate of global warming under 1.5 degrees. Keeping this in mind, can you tell us about your work on carbon mitigation in India and what are the three most important features of this work?

A: Reducing the carbon intensity is one of India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) goals. The country has clearly stated that by 2030, the carbon emission intensity of its GDP will be reduced by at least 15 percent. Now, if you read the IPCC report, there are multiple activities that can be done to reduce the emission.

There are three things that GGGI can do and has been doing (to help India achieve this NDC)

1) Green mobility: GGGI has helped the government of Himachal Pradesh to introduce electric buses and is now doing it in two other states, including Karnataka.

2) Resource efficiency of water: In big cities, there is no account of the water that is treated and supplied by the municipality. This is almost like electricity which is stolen and is not accounted for. So we are looking at ways to get that water accounted for.

3) Effect of climate change on livelihood: We are about to launch a study to see how climate change is affecting livelihoods in the consumer commodity sector. Based on this study we will see what business models can be adopted to mitigate climate change in the tea and coffee sector.

IPS: Which are some of the easy and affordable ways for India to reduce its carbon footprint by reducing plastic use? 

A: Recycling building materials is a very simple and doable way. All over the country, the construction waste always goes to the landfill. Instead, this can be recycled and used to build pavements or bricks.

Secondly, everywhere these days people are building pavements and parking areas by using concrete layers which do not allow any water to percolate. Simple steps like making these layers porous can help the water flow freely to the ground, rainwater can easily percolate and groundwater can be recharged. If some financial designs, some business models and some regulations can be brought around this, it can bring around some industries and help strengthen the economy.

IPS: These measures sound so simple, yet why did nobody think about it?

A: Well, that is because we were not conscious about it. I think it’s like the ‘#metoo’ movement where there is consciousness before people start thinking and acting on it. Then of course there has to be finance which will come only when there is a market, which again happens when there are regulations.

IPS: In the environmental sector, those who have concrete ideas don’t have access to money, and those who have money say there are no bankable projects. What is your take on this?

A: I think it’s not that there is no capital or no opportunities. The rate at which the finance is available is the major issue. The cost of project developers or people who want to build a sustainable business – that is one issue and the second issue is lack of regulations to create the market. For example, when India announced that it wanted to produce 175 gigawatt of renewable energy, the rates were brought down from 6-7 rupees per units of electricity to 2-3 rupees. So there are regulations like this for the government to bring which can pave the way for the market to open up.

The other issues are sensitising people to accept the rate at which finances are distributed, financial restructuring and creating incentives for those who take steps for greening the economy like building green buildings.

IPS: We often hear people –particularly small, grassroots organisations- complain that their proposal was rejected by the Green Climate Fund because it wasn’t framed well. How can GGGI help?

A: We have done the readiness proposals which are built around the capacity in around eight countries across the world. We would love to partner with the government of India to help all of its accredited entities to access the GCF fund. GGGI has a very niche sort of knowledge in that and very specialised knowledge in accessing the GCF finance. We have conveyed this to the government and it’s now under consideration.

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The post Q&A: Ready to Help India Access Climate Finance for a Greener Economy appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Excerpt:

IPS correspondent Stella Paul interviews SHANTANU GOTMARE, Country Head, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), India

The post Q&A: Ready to Help India Access Climate Finance for a Greener Economy appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Global Illicit Trade Environmental Index

By Stefano Betti
NEW YORK, Oct 31 2018 (IPS)

Since the 2011 revolution, Tunisia has been heralded as a model of democratic transition. However, nine governments in the past seven years have been struggling to revive the economy and the North African state faces the difficult task of maintaining faith in democracy amid a lagging economy, rising security challenges, and widespread corruption.

This challenge is exacerbated by a historic dependence on informal cross-border trade coupled with an economy that is itself largely informal, accounting for as much as 50% of Tunisia’s GDP. Taken together, these factors have provided fertile grounds for illicit trade to flourish.

Although headlines commonly focus on the illegal imports of fuel and tobacco, a wide variety of other products such as pharmaceuticals, fruit and vegetables, electronics, home appliances, clothes, and shoes are smuggled in and out of the country.

And, if these goods and the transactions remain within the informal network, the loss of government revenues can be significant. Illicit trade also undermines legitimate business, who can’t compete against smugglers. Furthermore, it deters foreign investments in the struggling economy.

Given its linkages to organized criminal activity, illicit trade can underpin wider risks to national and regional security. This is especially the case when existing routes and markets for cross-border smuggling of consumer products are exploited by criminal groups, including non-state armed actors, for trafficking in high profile illegal goods, such as drugs and arms.

To help inform governments on the effectiveness of their efforts to fight illicit trade, the Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT) commissioned the Economist Intelligence Unit to produce the Global Illicit Trade Environment Index as a tool to measure the extent to which countries enable or inhibit illicit trade.

Recent findings from the Index underscore the continued challenge that Tunisia faces in combatting illicit trade despite laudable efforts undertaken in recent years, including the Government’s crackdown on corruption and organized crime in 2017 that led to the arrest of several mafia bosses and smuggling ringleaders.

Tunisia ranks 53rd out of 84 countries evaluated worldwide. The overall low score is primarily a result of major price and tax differentials with its neighboring countries, systemic corruption, a lack of legal job opportunities in the formal market and porous borders, which together create an environment where illicit trade thrives.

Tunisia is by no means alone in facing this threat. All countries in the region are challenged to protect their economies from illicit trade. Algeria is ranked 58, Morocco is 65 and Libya holds the lowest ranking on the Index at 84. Clearly, more needs be done stop the surge in illicit trade that is flooding North Africa and drowning out economic development opportunities.

Yet, finding solutions is not a simple task. Smuggling economies have been an integral component of regional trade for centuries, with contraband and informal commerce serving as the main sources of employment in some border communities. The evolving geopolitics in the wake of the Arab Spring have changed security dynamics in the region, opening new routes and markets for exploitation of a broad range of illicit goods.

The Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (www.TRACIT.org) is stepping up to the challenge by leading business engagement with national governments and intergovernmental organizations to develop a comprehensive and effective anti-illicit trade program to curb illicit goods that harm legitimate businesses, workers, consumers and governments.

During a special event in Tunis hosted by American Chamber of Commerce Tunisia (AmCham Tunisia), TRACIT highlighted a number of priority areas that Tunisia might consider to enhance its overall policy environment to discourage illicit trade.

This includes a national strategy that addresses incentives for smuggling, such as reforming administered prices and subsidies, tariff policies and technical constraints to legal importation. While important pieces of legislation have been enacted in recent years, which led, among others, to a strengthened legal framework against intellectual property infringements and a better protection of whistle blowers in corruption cases, the enforcement of existing laws needs to be improved. To do so, it will be paramount to ensure the allocation of proper human and financial resources.

Crucially, policies to address illicit trade will need to be holistic and factor in broad social impact and local development issues. This includes steps to ensure that policies do not inadvertently de-stabilize communities that currently depend on informal cross-border trade. It is important that efforts to disrupt illicit trade include a development aspect to provide border regions with sustainable alternative sources of livelihood.

Finally, tackling illicit trade will also require improved and deepened cooperation between neighboring countries. Disparities in different governments’ policies and subsidies create large differences in prices and taxes and arbitrage opportunities for traffickers in illicit goods.

As far as possible, Tunisia should seek to align tariff rates and subsidy policies with its neighbors, strengthen border control and integrate the illicit trade threat into bilateral and regional-level discussions.

Tunisia, and the region more broadly, will continue to struggle with illicit trade until the root causes are targeted and abated. TRACIT looks forward to collaborating with the Tunisian government and private sector stakeholders to advance the anti-illicit trade agenda and ensure clean and safe trade and sustainable economic development.

*Stefano Betti is a leading expert in the area of international criminal policy and justice reform. He also currently collaborates with the Siracusa Institute for Criminal Justice and Human Rights as well as Oxford Economics on two illicit trade related projects. Before joining TRACIT, he was Senior Counsel at INTERPOL’s Office of Legal Affairs, where he headed the Organization’s legal program on illicit trade.

The post North African Countries Need to Protect Their Economies From Illicit Trade appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Excerpt:

Stefano Betti is Deputy Director-General, The Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT), an independent, business-led initiative to mitigate the economic and social damages of illicit trade by strengthening government enforcement mechanisms and integrating supply chain controls across industry sectors.

The post North African Countries Need to Protect Their Economies From Illicit Trade appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Stingrays, which can be found in the Indian Ocean which surrounds the Seychelles. This flattened fish is closely related to sharks. The Seychelles has become the first country in the world to issue a blue bond, focused on funding sustainable use of marine resources. Credit: Nalisha Adams/IPS

By Kanis Dursin
JAKARTA, Oct 31 2018 (IPS)

The Republic of Seychelles announced on Monday that it has issued a 10-year blue bond to finance fisheries projects, making it the world’s first country to utilise capital markets for funding the sustainable use of marine resources.

Seychelles Vice President Vincent Meriton told IPS that the bond was officially issued Oct. 9 and that its sales have so far raised 15 million dollars from three institutional investors: Calvert Impact Capital, Nuveen, and Prudential.

“At least 12 million dollars of the proceeds will be allocated for low-interest loans and grants to local fishermen communities, while the remainder will finance research on sustainable fisheries projects,” Meriton told IPS in a telephone interview on Sunday.

The news comes ahead of the first-ever global conference on the blue economy, which will be held at the end of November in Kenya.

Participants from around the globe will gather in the country’s capital, Nairobi, and attend the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference to discuss ways of building a blue economy that harnesses the potential of oceans, lakes and rivers and improves the lives of all.

At the conference participants will also showcase latest innovations, scientific advances and best practices to develop economies while conserving the world’s waters.

The Seychelles’ blue bond will likely be a mechanism of great interest to participants.

“We are honoured to be the first nation to pioneer such a novel financing instrument,” Meriton said when announcing the bond on the first day of the Our Ocean Conference in Nusa Dua, Bali, a one-hour flight east of the Indonesian capital Jakarta.

“The blue bond, which is part of an initiative that combines public and private investment to mobilise resources for empowering local communities and businesses, will greatly assist Seychelles in achieving a transition to sustainable fisheries and safeguarding our oceans while we sustainably develop our blue economy,” Meriton continued.

Grants and loans to Seychelles fisher communities would be provided through the Blue Grants Fund and Blue Investment Fund, managed respectively by the Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) and the Development Bank of Seychelles (DBS).

An archipelagic country in the western Indian Ocean, Seychelles has 115 granite and coral islands spreading across an exclusive economic zone of approximately 1.4 million square kilometers.

After tourism, the fisheries sector is the country’s most important industry, contributing significantly to annual GDP and employing 17 percent of the population, with fish products accounting for around 95 percent of the total value of domestic exports.

From right to left: Nico Barito (Seychelles Consular General to Indonesia), Vincent Meriton (Seychelles Vice President), Laura Tuck (World Bank Vice President), James Michel (Former Seychelles President), and Justin Mundy (World Resources Institute and former director of HRH The Prince of Wales’ International Sustainability Unit). Courtesy: Nico Barito

According to Meriton, the idea of a blue bond was first floated under former president James Michel in 2011, but the concept for a blue bond to support a transition to sustainable fisheries was conceived in 2014 only with the help of HRH The Prince of Wales’ International Sustainability Unit.

Since then, a World Bank team comprising experts from its Treasury, Legal, Environmental and Finance groups has worked with investors, structured the blue bond, and assisted the Seychelles government in setting up a platform for channeling its proceeds.

A joint statement issued by the Seychelles government and the World Bank said the blue bond is backed by a five million dollar guarantee from the World Bank and a five million dollar concessional loan from the Global Environment Facility (GEF). It will also pay an annual coupon of 6.5 percent to investors, but the GEF concessional loan would cut the cost to Seychelles to 2.8 percent.

The statement also said proceeds from the bond sales would finance the expansion of marine protected areas, improved governance of priority fisheries and the development of the Seychelles’ blue economy, and contribute to the World Bank’s South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Governance and Shared Growth Program, which supports countries in the region to sustainably manage fisheries and increase economic benefits from their fisheries sectors.

World Bank Vice President and Treasurer Arunma Oteh called the blue bond a milestone that complements other activities aimed at supporting sustainable use of marine resources, including particularly the fishery sector.

“We hope that this bond will pave the way for others …. The blue bond is yet another example of the powerful role of capital markets in connecting investors to projects that support better stewardship of the planet,” Oteh said in a joint statement.

World Bank Vice President of Sustainable Development Laura Tuck said the blue bond could serve as a model for other countries in mobilising funds to finance sustainable fisheries projects.

“The World Bank is excited to be involved in the launch of this sovereign blue bond and believes it can serve as a model for other small island developing states and coastal countries. It is a powerful signal that investors are increasingly interested in supporting the sustainable management and development of our oceans for generations to come,” Tuck said.

SeyCCAT Chief Executive Officer Martin Callow was quoted as saying that the bond would support the country’s ambitions to create a diversified blue economy.

“We are privileged to be working with the many partners involved in this unique transaction, and we are excited about the possibilities to back pre-development and growth stage projects in support of Seychelles’ blue economy. With these new resources, our guiding principles, and the blended finance structure that we have developed, we will support Seychelles’ ambitions to create a diversified blue economy and, importantly, to safeguard fisheries and ocean ecosystems,” said Callow.

Daniel Gappy, CEO of DBS, expressed similar sentiments and vowed to support the government’s quest for sustainable development. DBS will co-manage proceeds from the bond via the creation of the Blue Investment Fund.

“Establishing the Blue Investment Fund will bring additional exposure both locally and internationally for the bank and will provide opportunities to enhance our competency in fund management for positive environmental, social and governance outcomes,” said Gappy.

Meanwhile, Pietra Widiadi, Green and Blue Economy Strategic Leader at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Indonesia, said the blue bond offers huge potential as an alternative financing source, but many things need to be done to ensure the projects achieve their targets.

“Awareness on the importance of the blue economy is still relatively low in island nations, especially those in the south. For that reason, I think any blue bond project should start with building the capacity of people involved,” Widiadi told IPS.

Indonesia and other island nations, Widiadi said, could use Seychelles’ blue bond structure as a model in tapping the bond market for financing sustainable fishery and marine projects.

“Projects funded with blue bond, just like green bond, are rigidly regulated, but Seychelles’ blue bond can serve as a model on how we can move forward,” he said.

Edo Rakhman, a national coast and ocean campaigner for the Indonesian Forum for Environment or Walhi, a leading civil society organisation that champions environmental issues, hailed the world’s first blue bond but stressed that any sustainable fishery and marine project should start with protecting the rights of local fisher communities and mangroves along coastal areas.

“Island nations should designate fishing grounds or zones where all forms of extractive activities are prohibited and mangroves protected to ensure the sustainability of fish stock for local fishermen communities,” Edo said.

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Why have Nigeria's main parties both chosen septuagenarian presidential candidates?

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By Geneva Centre
GENEVA, Oct 30 2018 (Geneva Centre)

Anger among youth in the Arab region is coupled with a perceived sense of powerlessness which leads it to become detached from current affairs, says Ambassador Idriss Jazairy, the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue, at the European Centre for Peace Development 6th Global Youth Forum held in Belgrade.

Ambassador Jazairy told the audience that “each generation wants to chart two tracks one short track to improve the present and a longer one to reshape the architecture of its future in the pursuit of its own ideal.”

In relation to the present track, Ambassador Jazairy added that the younger generation in the Arab region aspires to enhance their participation in decision-making and in “promoting a culture of accountability in the field of human rights.”

In the case of their forebears, – he observed – the quest for human dignity was dominated by “patriotic anti-colonialism” and the search for “sovereignty.” However, youth do not consider like their forebears that their quest for dignity is a short track leading to sovereignty as the latter is already a given.

Therefore, the search for human dignity which for “their elders targeted their anger outwards against the colonial powers is pursued by the younger generation while targeting their anger inwards towards the status quo,” he said. “However, both generations are bound by a shared “opposition to foreign interference whether through punitive sanctions or through invasion which compounds their anger when they occur,” added Ambassador Jazairy

With regard to the longer track and long-term ideal, the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Communist ideology deprived the younger generation from the “cementing effect of a nation centralised through statism and socialism.” The lack of a perceived long-term ideal for the future “had led the youth also to excavate an imagined ideal from the pre-colonial past i.e. the euphoric vision of an Islamic nation,“ he remarked.

In this context, the Geneva Centre’s Executive Director therefore upheld the view that the loss of “a social compass” amongst the youth has “degenerated into anger coupled with a perceived and probably excessive sense of powerlessness.” “It explains why the Arab commotion called ‘Arab Spring’ was hardly more than social spasms generated by anger but deprived of a credible ideal for the longer term,” added Ambassador Jazairy in his presentation to the audience.

To address the prevailing situation affecting the growing degree of powerlessness of youth in the Arab region, the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre stated that attaining equal citizenship rights and the rights-based “leitmotif of E Pluribus Unum” is the best way to defuse tensions and create resilient and cohesive societies. This would in the long run – he observed – enable all citizens to enjoy indiscriminately the same rights, privileges and duties.

“It will ultimately make irrelevant or obsolete the marginalizing and even oppressive connotations of concepts of ethnic, religious or gender minorities. It will cloak all individuals in a nation with the same right to dignity. Indeed the concept of minorities will seamlessly yield to that of social components of diversity in unity,” Ambassador Jazairy concluded in his presentation.

The post Geneva Centre Executive Director: Upcoming generations can lift the Arab region out of its current crisis appeared first on Inter Press Service.

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By WAM
DUBAI, Oct 30 2018 (WAM)

The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) concluded the 13th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP13) in Dubai, with three UAE-led resolutions passed and the declaration of Jebel Ali Wetland Sanctuary as a Wetland of International Importance, also known as a Ramsar Site.

After negotiations led by MOCCAE, two new UAE-submitted and one UAE-supported resolutions were adopted at COP13. One of the resolutions put forth by the UAE – in line with the Wetlands for a Sustainable Urban Future theme – aims to protect and manage wetlands under specific guidelines that increase climate change and extreme weather events resilience. In addition, the resolution calls on all countries to involve various stakeholders, including governments, private sector entities, non-governmental organisations, research centers, educational institutions, tourism industry, heritage and culture sector, indigenous peoples and local communities to take part in the decision-making process on wetland issues.

The second resolution adopted includes sustainable urbanization, climate change and wetlands to invite the United Nations General Assembly to recognize February 2, the date of the adoption of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, as World Wetland Day. Another resolution was supported by the UAE to introduce Arabic as an official Convention language, aside from English, French and Spanish, so as to foster engagement, raise awareness and improve the implementation of the Convention for Arabic-speaking contracting parties. In addition, it would help appreciate the range of distinct wetland types such as wadis, sabkhas and oases in Arab countries.

Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al-Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment , said: “Throughout COP13, there were many references made to climate change and its negative effects, and more importantly, how wetlands can play a major role in the mitigation of climate change and to support countries in meeting their Sustainable Development Goals. As a pioneer in the region for green economy and environmental efforts, the UAE was honored to have hosted COP13 and to drive international cooperation and the exchange of best practices to protect these valuable ecosystems that have an impact on our lives, society and our future.”

At the closing ceremony of COP13, Martha Rojas Urrego, Secretary General of Ramsar Convention, said: “For the first time we have the evidence that we are losing wetlands, and their critical services for people, three times faster than forests. My hope is that for the next three years until the next COP, parties can rise to this challenge and implement policies that will effectively integrate wetlands in the sustainable development agenda. The Ramsar Secretariat will support parties to ensure to turn the tide and reverse wetlands’ loss.”

Dawoud Al Hajri, Director General of Dubai Municipality – the main sponsor of COP13, said: “Dubai Municipality’s vision focuses on building a happy and sustainable city, and a part of achieving that goal is to ensure the protection and sustainability of the environment. We are proud to now have a second Ramsar Site of International Importance, and to continue protecting our ecologically-significant areas. Through COP13, we are confident that each of us will play our part in furthering the cause for the protection and wise use of wetlands for humanity.”

Located between Jebel Ali and Ras Ghantoot and spanning 21.85 km2, Jebel Ali Wetland Sanctuary was recognized as the UAE’s eighth Ramsar Site, due to housing rare and unique wetland types comprising coral reefs, mangroves, shallow lagoons, seagrass, oyster beds and sandy shorelines, that support 539 species of vulnerable, endangered and critically endangered species of flora and fauna. The sandy beaches of Jebel Ali are also one of the key breeding sites for the critically endangered hawksbill turtle. Established in 1998, Jebel Ali Wetland Sanctuary is recognized by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) as one of the Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs) in the Arabian Gulf.

The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment was also instrumental in launching the results of the Emirates Nature-WWF Coastal and Marine Habitat Mapping project in the Northern Emirates, on the sidelines of COP13. The project mapped 783.2 km2 in total area along a 400 kilometers’ coastline, in which 17 habitat types were identified. With increasing human activities taking place at sea, along with the growing effects of climate change, marine spatial management is crucial in achieving the sustainable and wise management of marine resources.

Six Chinese cities were awarded the Wetland City Accreditation at COP13, in appreciation of China’s commendable efforts on the conservation and wise use of wetlands. The other cities given the Wetland City Accreditation were Amiens, Courteranges, Pont Audemer and Saint Omer in France, Lakes by Tata in Hungary, Republic of Korea’s Changnyeong, Inje, Jeju and Suncheon, Mitsinjo in Madagascar, Colombo in Sri Lanka and Ghar el Melh in Tunisia.

The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national events and global cooperation for the conservation of wetlands and the rational use of their resources.

 

WAM/Tariq alfaham/Hatem Mohamed

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By WAM
DUBAI, Oct 30 2018 (WAM)

The Federal Electricity and Water Authority, FEWA, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, with Honeywell to drive sustainable development and green economy initiatives in the UAE’s Northern Emirates.

The collaboration details FEWA’s focus on driving significant energy savings of between 10 and 30 percent across a range of public sector buildings through the adoption of advanced energy efficiency technologies and to improve the standards of living and achieve sustainable growth by 2021.

Under the terms of the agreement which was signed at WETEX 2018, the parties will determine a Proof of Value, focusing particularly on Honeywell’s next-generation solutions that enable significant energy savings and adhere to sustainable environmental guidelines. These technologies include building management systems, energy management dashboards and energy performance contracting, EPC.

The partnership will support the goals of the UAE Energy Strategy 2050, which is considered the first unified energy strategy in the country based on supply and demand. The strategy aims to increase the contribution of clean energy in the total energy mix from 25 percent to 50 percent by 2050 and reduce carbon footprint of power generation by 70 percent, thus saving AED700 billion by 2050. It also seeks to increase consumption efficiency of individuals and corporates by 40 percent.

Commenting on the collaboration, Salim Bin Rabee’a, Executive Director of Electricity Directorate at FEWA, said, “One of our core objectives is conservation, which is in line with our country’s vision to achieve a sustainable future for the next generation. We are working with leading global technology companies like Honeywell to collectively reduce the UAE’s energy consumption through technology that provides more energy efficient solutions and reduces operational costs.”

Honeywell and FEWA will enter into an energy performance contract based on guaranteed savings focusing on Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning, HVAC, cost reductions, and operational efficiencies based on cloud-based analytics, in addition to ensuring carbon emissions reduction. Facilities of particular focus for the EPC will be schools, mosques, hospitals and FEWA’s offices.

The EPC will be managed through performance dashboards and reports providing visibility of building performance. The initiative also includes the deployment of Honeywell’s cloud analytics platform, Outcome Based Service, OBS, to support increased operational performance, optimal efficiency, increased comfort levels of building occupants, and maximise uptime to positively impact the bottom line.

“With nearly 50 percent of our portfolio linked to cutting-edge energy efficiency and energy management technologies, Honeywell is well positioned to support FEWA in reducing energy consumption. In line with the UAE and FEWA Vision 2021 and the UAE Energy Strategy 2050, we remain committed to reducing energy consumption to help achieve a sustainable future,” said Susanna Minoia, Chief Financial Officer, Honeywell Building Solutions, High Growth Regions.

Around 60 to 70 percent of energy demand in the UAE currently stems from building HVAC requirements, with split air-conditioning units making up an estimated 60-70 percent of cooling systems in the market. As part of the collaboration, Honeywell will provide FEWA with insights and data points on energy-efficient low global warming potential, GWP, refrigerants that can drive efficiencies in energy usage and cost. The collaboration highlights both organisations’ commitment to supporting the UAE Sustainable Development Plan in line with meeting the sustainability goals of the UAE and FEWA Vision 2021.

 

WAM/ /MOHD AAMIR/Nour Salman

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Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr opts to give two Under-17 World Cup winners chances in the crucial 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against South Africa.

Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, is described as one of the safest and cleanest cities in Africa. The country is now implementing its national development plan to create green secondary cities. Credit: Aimable Twahirwa/IPS

By Aimable Twahirwa
KIGALI, Oct 30 2018 (IPS)

An ambitious programme aimed at developing six green secondary cities in Rwanda is underway and is expected to help this East African country achieve sustainable economic growth through energy efficiency and green job creation.

At a time when natural resource efficiency is described as key for cities in Rwanda to move towards a green economy, the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is supporting the government in implementing its national development plan by creating a National Roadmap for Developing Green Secondary Cities.

Six cities have been identified in this East African nation to become green: Huye (south), Muhanga (central south), Nyagatare (northeast), Rubavu (northwest), Musanze (sorth) and Rusizi (southwest).

According to GGGI, the roadmap serves mainly as an implementation tool for other national development programmes as it provides key actions and practical planning guidance to policymakers in order to strengthen economic growth, enhance the quality of health and basic services, and address vulnerability in Rwanda’s urbanisation process.

With the urban population growing at 4.5 percent a year, more than double the global average, Rwandan officials are now emphasising the need to develop secondary cities as poles of growth as the country has set a target to achieve a 35 percent urban population by 2034.

“The initiative has so far helped to develop a Green Investment Plan for these six cities, and a number of project concepts were then shortlisted as possible green projects,” Daniel Okechukwu Ogbonnaya, the acting country representative and lead Rwanda programme coordinator of the GGGI in Kigali, tells IPS.

By supporting the implementation of the Green City Development Projects, GGGI in collaboration with the relevant government agencies also developed a Green City Pilot vision, parameters and concepts that will enable a demonstration effect on how green urbanisation could be showcased in a flagship project.

Among some quick win projects that were identified during the development of the National Roadmap, it includes for example the Rubavu Eco-Tourism in northwestern Rwanda, which aims to conserve the environment while improving the welfare of local people through job creation in the tourism and travel industry.

In Rwanda, some key interventions by GGGI to support a ‘green economy’ approach to economic transformation were to move from ideas into project concepts that could be used to access investment opportunities which have a good job creation potential when implemented.

Major focuses of these interventions are mainly on sustainable land use management, promoting resilient transport systems, low carbon urban systems and green industry and private sector development.

“But the limited capacity to understand the paradigm shift at local level makes it sometimes difficult because they don’t have a proper understanding of the business environment,” Ogbonnaya says.

While the initiative appears to be a strategic tool for the National Strategy for Climate Change and Low Carbon Development that was adopted by the country in 2011, experts suggest that it is also important for local administrative entities to understand the mechanisms of green urbanisation and secondary city development.

Some experts in urban planning believe that with the mindset for Rwanda’s green secondary cities development changing from “quantity” to “quality,” top priority should be given to marrying individual and community interests in these remote urban settings.

“With the high rate of energy consumption growth, the new approach for green secondary cities seeks implementing and enforcing energy efficiency standards for industrial and residential uses,” Parfait Karekezi, who is in charge of Green and Smart City development at the government’s Rwanda Housing Authority, tells IPS.

A key focus of these interventions is the provision of affordable housing with due regard to adequate water and sanitation facilities for secondary cities dwellers, promoting grouped settlements locally known as ‘Imidugudu’.

With the weak residential infrastructure in secondary urban settings in Rwanda, Karekezi stresses that current efforts supported by GGGI are helping local authorities to adopt a set of housing standards with appropriate design for some parts such as windows to provide energy savings in electric lighting.

“Absolutely, there is a long way to go for Rwanda, including efforts to raise awareness on energy efficiency and other issues, such as urging people in these listed areas not to build housing that does not meet the required standards,” Karekezi tells IPS in an exclusive interview.

Within these efforts supported by GGGI, both climate change experts and Rwandan officials believe that the ability of secondary cities to create job opportunities would help draw people from rural areas.

While official estimates indicate that land as a basic resource for many people’s rural livelihoods and for new productive activity is pressured by increasing population density, especially in rural areas, the Rwandan government aims to create at least 200,000 jobs a year through the second phase of its Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Rwandan officials believe that developing secondary cities will be a key part of national efforts to ensure that the local economy enables the direct creation of green jobs, especially in the service and industrial sectors.

Both Karekezi and Ogbonnaya are convinced that capacitating local actors and the private sector to understand how projects and concepts are designed represents a shift in how the implementation of green urbanisation will be properly managed.

Despite some successful projects including the ecotourism initiative which is currently contributing to improving the welfare of local residents in Rubavu, a lakeside city in northwestern Rwanda where local residents have long struggled over control of natural resources and tourism profits, experts believe that the focus should be more on private investments than on direct government aid.

In 2018, GGGI supported the government of Rwanda to receive a readiness project grant of 600,000 dollars, funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The grant aims to ensure that the country has improved capacity to develop and deliver green city development concepts, identify investment priorities, and is ready to qualify for, and receive, GCF climate finance.

Ogbonnaya said it should also focus on how each submitted project aimed at green city development is designed and how it aligns with government priorities.

For example, GGGI provided support to draft the Rwanda Green Building Minimum Compliance and Standards that will replace the current building codes and therefore accelerate green growth and low-carbon development in Rwanda’s urban areas.

In addition, the World Bank committed 95 million dollars in 2016 to support targeted infrastructure development and local economic development in the above listed six secondary cities.

But still, locally-based organisations and administrative authorities with private companies need to be the main actors for the successful implementations of the green cities initiative.

“At local level they still don’t have a proper understanding of the green business environment in prioritising projects based on profits rather than impacts,” Ogbonnaya says.

Currently GGGI is capacitating the local administrative entities in the listed secondary cities to develop their own District Development Strategies (DDS) ) for six secondary cities as reference tools for the better implementation of green initiatives at local level.

Thanks to these interventions, some local actors are being empowered to implement projects such as garden cities, which have been described as another opportunity to attract investment and create employment as well.

“But to really grow, these green city projects needs to bring in financing and to get this happening, we need to have interesting projects and interesting businesses such as clean energies in which private companies can invest,” Karekezi tells IPS.

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The post Rwanda Action Plan Aims to Make Cities Green appeared first on Inter Press Service.

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