Achieving a low-emission economy with climate and energy strategies
Project description
Title: Policy dialogue and knowledge management on low-emission strategies (DIAPOL-CE)
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU)
Countries: Algeria, Gulf States, Iran, Jordan, Morocco, Rwanda, Senegal, Tunisia, Uganda,
Lead executing agency: Algeria: Ministère de la Transition énergétique et des Énergies renouvelables; Iran: Ministry of Energy, Department of Environment; Jordan: Ministry of Environment; Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources; Morocco: Ministère de l'Énergie, des Mines et de l'Environnement; Tunisia: Ministère de l'Industrie, de l'Énergie et des Mines; League of Arab States: Energy Department, Cairo/Egypt; Rwanda: Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning; Senegal: Ministère de l‘Environnement et du Développement Durable; Uganda: Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Ministry of Water and Environment
Overall term: 2014 to 2023
Context
Governments around the globe have signed the Paris Climate Agreement and submitted Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), signalling their commitment to developing and implementing strategies for the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy. Yet energy and resource requirements in the countries of Africa and Western Asia are set to increase greatly over the coming decades. This will result in higher greenhouse gas emissions combined with an increasing strain on ecosystems and natural resources.
However, countries have so far attached little importance to climate policy objectives in their economic planning. Although individual countries have begun to develop funding mechanisms and reduce emissions both in the energy sector and in other areas, it is still difficult to measure the impact on energy and the economy. This is where climate and energy strategies come in: their objective is to establish possible development paths to achieve a low emission economy and a sustainable energy system. However, these strategies need to be better coordinated and create long-term prospects and implementation structures.
Objective
Approaches to developing a resilient low-carbon economy in the countries of Africa and Western Asia are disseminated on a supraregional basis.
Approach
The project advises countries on strengthening their climate and energy policies. It bases these advisory services on the current requirements and developments in the target countries, working in close coordination with the political partners there. It develops suitable instruments for achieving the governmental reduction and adaptation targets for sub-sectors and supports the implementation of measures.
To ensure that knowledge and experience are firmly embedded in local structures, the project implements its activities together with national institutions in each partner country. It cooperates with regional organisations such as the League of Arab States. Within regional networks, the project also promotes cross-border exchange between politics, business and civil society.
Results
Algeria has set itself ambitious targets for expanding renewable energies and increasing energy efficiency. To analyse how the transformation of the energy sector affects other sectors of the economy, the project supports the development of climate-energy-economy models. In an interdisciplinary network of researchers from across the region (the Climate-Economy-ENergy Modelling Network, CliEEN), the project promotes additional expertise. It helps lay the foundations for a fact-based climate and energy policy. The project has also published a study analysing the current situation, plans and motivations for coal generation in six countries in North Africa and Western Asia.
In Iran, the project supports adaptation strategies that concentrate on implementing integrated water management taking account of climate change in a selected river basin. Virtual training courses familiarise experts from Iran and Afghanistan with aspects of cross-border water management.
The project supports the Energy Department of the League of Arab States and the Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE) in implementing the Pan-Arab Sustainable Energy Strategy. Overall, the project has advised twelve countries on developing national action plans for renewable energies and energy efficiency. A regional study and a verification instrument help to assess the role the energy sector plays in national contributions to the Paris Climate Agreement.
The project also promotes the regional exchange of knowledge on innovative energy efficiency measures via the Energy Efficiency Platform for the Arab Region. In Jordan, two energy efficiency networks have been set up jointly with the Jordan Chamber of Industry. These are alliances of companies, one for central Jordan and one for the food industry. They support cooperation and promote the exchange of knowledge on energy efficiency between companies.
Last updated: March 2021