Cape Town – Delegates from 82 countries attending the South African International Renewable Energy Conference in Cape Town on Tuesday adopted a declaration to ensure universal access to energy becomes a reality by 2030.
“As of today 2.9 billion people lack access to clean forms of cooking which needs to be addressed in order to achieve the universal access target,” delegates said in the declaration.
“We note that to make universal access a reality by 2030, 1.3 billion people, out of which 621 million live in the sub-Saharan region, should be provided access to electricity.”
Delegates are set to tour South African renewable energy projects on Wednesday, as the country tries to sell itself as a leader in renewable energy technology on the African continent.
These and many other projects on the continent would, however, require investment, something the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), a conference participant, believes there is is huge appetite for.
A study released by IRENA found there were opportunities to quadruple the share of renewables in energy consumption in Africa, from the current 5 percent to 22 percent by 2030.
During Tuesday’s conference closing session, Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) executive secretary Christine Lins said the uptake of renewable energy innovations was surpassing expectations globally, and said this could be replicated in Africa.
“Africa has the capacity, the capability and ..political will to become a world leader in renewable energy technologies,” Lins said to applause from delegates.
An upbeat South African Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson said the conference declaration would not be left to gather dust, but would be factored into key government talks and discussions by the ruling African National Congress party.
“This conference set good targets. Let them not remain targets on paper,” Joemat-Pettersson said.
“The report of our conference has been one central to discussions of government and which would be central to the ruling party over the next few days.”
African News Agency