Evaluation Report 2024: Foreword

Dear readers,

Te world is in turmoil. Crises of all kinds vie for our attention, from Ukraine to the Middle East. Tere are also the almost forgotten crises, such as those in Ethiopia, Yemen, South Sudan and Venezuela. According to the UN, we are currently seeing the largest number of conficts since the Second World War. All this is happening in the shadow of wider geopolitical tensions. 

Our concerns are compounded by dwindling resources, a dramatic loss of biodiversity and a climate crisis on a massive scale, which reached a new peak in 2024. We are already feeling the consequences. People all over the world are sufering from water shortages, forest destruction, foods, droughts and air pollution, even if some are afected worse than others. New conficts can develop out of these environmental impacts, and sometimes the impacts themselves are the fundamental cause of conficts. 

Nonetheless, we are able to exert an infuence and change things for the better. Science shows us very clearly what should be done. We need a transformation towards a more sustainable and equitable way of life to keep global warming at a manageable level. Tis transformation is possible if we continue to shape it through robust, consistent, evidence­based and fair action. GIZ is playing a part in these eforts.

Some initial successes are already becoming apparent. Te global energy transition is in full swing. Te use of renewable energies is spreading with increasing speed, and each year they reach new record levels. If these developments continue, this year more electricity will be generated from renewable sources than from coal. And from around 2030 onwards, renewable energies will account for nearly half of the world’s electricity production. 

This is good news that we often overlook among all the negative headlines. International cooperation makes a major contribution to this positive development. Germany is one of the largest promoters of this transition. Just over twenty years ago, the frst international renewables conference was held in Bonn. Back then, renewables were still regarded as an outlier, but a lot has happened in the intervening period, not least thanks to our engagement. 

In many countries we have been involved in initiating this transformation. Today, the feld of climate action and energy accounts for roughly one third of GIZ’s total turnover. Our activities in the energy sector are strategic and broad­based, ranging from wind power to green hydrogen and from solar panels to clean cooking stoves. While emphasising the importance of the actual transformation process, we believe it must also come about in a just manner. ‘Leave no one behind’, the motto of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), applies here without reservation.

Around 685 million people still lack access to energy, and the vast majority of them – some 600 million – live in Africa. Te main defcit there is the absence of decentralised solutions for renewable energy, such as small photovoltaic systems that operate independently of the electricity grid. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, these systems have the potential to supply 500 million people with electricity while simultaneously reducing CO₂ emissions by 1.2 gigatonnes by 2030. Tey can boost development and support the energy transition at the same time. GIZ actively promotes solutions of this kind, too, through its projects.

Nevertheless, in order to ensure that our resources are deployed to the best possible efect, we regularly pause to consider and review our actions. We owe this to the taxpayers who fund our work. Above all, we also owe it to our partners and the people in our partner countries, because we aim to achieve as much as possible and in doing so to help drive the transformation.

One of the ways in which GIZ supports evidence­based and efective work is by maintaining an independent Evaluation Unit, which examines projects and programmes systematically and continuously. Its fndings help us to learn, identify weaknesses and reinforce strengths. To this end, the unit supplements its general assessments with special topics. Te report you are now reading was compiled using a cross­sectional analysis of the energy sector. Tere is a good reason for this. Energy is a key factor in economic development and security policy, and when it comes to achieving other sustainability goals. Te type of energy we use exerts a huge infuence on the extent of climate change. Some countries in the Global South are now using renewables almost exclusively, while others are just beginning the transformation. What they all have in common is that clean energy is the essential fuel driving sustainable development.

Fortunately, the analysis indicates that GIZ is on the right track. Our projects in the energy sector come out with especially good ratings. The high scores they achieve tell us that we are contributing to efective change and that the projects are well accepted in our partner countries. The energy transition is not seen as a German invention that we are imposing on other countries; they actually desire it themselves because it drives the international energy transition and with it the process of decarbonisation that will help to preserve the natural systems on which our lives depend. Our partners also want to become more (climate­)resilient and more competitive – and they seek our support in these endeavours. The analysis reveals that this functions especially well when projects meet local needs and are integrated into national strategies. 

Taken together, this all shows that international cooperation works. It brings about changes in poorer countries and supports German and European interests. This means that international cooperation is a key element in a secure future, both here in Germany and elsewhere. I hope you enjoy reading our new Evaluation Report and fnd it a useful source of information.

Ingrid-Gabriela Hoven  

Deputy Chair of the Management Board