The 4th Steering Committee Meeting of the Global Network of Regional Sustainable Energy Centres (GN-SEC) was held on 25 October 2019 in Accra, Ghana. The GN-SEC represents an innovative south-south and triangular multi-stakeholder partnership to accelerate the energy and climate transformation in developing countries. Since 2010, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) assists the regional economic communities/organizations and their member states in the establishment and operation of regional sustainable energy promotion centres.
The 4th Steering Committee Meeting brought together the GN-SEC members, supporting partners, and the representatives of international organizations. The Meeting marked the involvement of new members to the GN-SEC process, including ECO. Its proceedings addressed the achievements and next milestones of GN-SEC and its members, lessons learned from different regions across the globe, and underscored the partnership opportunities within the GN-SEC. The Meeting also deliberated on the potential GN-SEC working groups and programmes.
Director of Energy, Minerals and Environment of ECO Secretariat, Mr. Fuad Farzalibeyov participated at the Meeting. ECO Director delivered the presentation on the Preparatory Phase of the Project of the establishment of ECO Clean Energy Centre, being jointly implemented by ECO and UNIDO. Having briefed the audience on the background, objectives, recent status, expected benefits and impacts of the above Project in his presentation, ECO Director characterized the ECO Clean Energy Centre as a promising future element of GN-SEC being implemented across the globe that could complement and potentially interconnect other Centres within GN-SEC framework. He highlighted that the establishment of the Centre will be an explicit example on how the countries mostly endowed with hydrocarbons resolve on a regional level on contributing to the sustainable energy transition. He stated that the Project has been recently launched and is currently underway. ECO expects to successfully finalize the Preparatory Phase presumably in February/March of 2020, which will enable it to proceed to the next ,“ Operational Phase of the Project.
On the sidelines of the event, ECO Director had the consultations with the GN-SEC members and supporting partners on collaboration opportunities as well as on the ways and means of supporting the establishment of ECO Clean Energy Centre, its fund-raising aspects, institutional and technical design.
It is noteworthy that the ECO Vision 2025 ,“ a major strategic document of the Organization ,“ stipulates the establishment of an ECO Clean Energy Centre up to 2025 by the ECO Secretariat and Member States. This joint endeavour is also a result of UNIDO’s long-lasting cooperative relationship with ECO based on a 1994 Agreement, pertaining to the promotion of cleaner and resource efficient production practices, as well as renewable energy and industrial energy efficiency.
