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- Honorable Minister of Mines, Petroleum, and Energy of Côte d’Ivoire,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Ministers,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Representatives of the Ministers,
- Honorable Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy, and Digitalization of the ECOWAS Commission,
- Excellencies, Ambassadors accredited to Côte d’Ivoire, and Representatives of international, African, and regional organizations,
- Her Excellency, the Resident Representative of ECOWAS in Côte d’Ivoire,
- Madam Director of the ECOWAS National Office of Côte d’Ivoire,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Representatives of Technical and Financial Partners,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Officials from ECOWAS Member States,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of the ECOWAS-Donor Consultative Committee of ECREEE,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, National Focal Points of ECREEE in the Member States,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Representatives of the Private Sector, Non-Governmental Organizations, and the academic and scientific community,
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of the SIREXE Organizing Committee,
- Dear Colleagues from the ECOWAS Commission, Institutions, and Specialized Agencies,
- Dear Colleagues from ECREEE,
- Dear Friends from the Media,
- Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Through me, the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), the specialized agency of the ECOWAS Commission responsible for promoting sustainable energy, extends a warm welcome to you all in Abidjan for the 9th edition of the ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum (ESEF2024) under the theme “Towards a Just Energy Transition in West Africa.”
At the outset, allow me to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Ministry of Mines, Petroleum, and Energy of Côte d’Ivoire for hosting ESEF 2024 in this beautiful city of Abidjan as part of the 1st International Exhibition on Extractive and Energy Resources (SIREXE). I deeply appreciate the seamless collaboration among various stakeholders, which has been instrumental in the joint organization of ESEF 2024 and SIREXE. I take this opportunity to thank the Minister of Energy of Côte d’Ivoire for the numerous facilities provided to organize ESEF 2024 and for the unwavering support extended to ECREEE’s activities.
Honorable Minister of Mines, Petroleum, and Energy of Côte d’Ivoire,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum (ESEF) is one of the three regional initiatives outlined in ECREEE’s 2023–2027 Strategic Plan. The other two initiatives include the ECOWAS Observatory for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, known as ECOWREX, and the Annual Report on Sustainable Energy Progress in West Africa. These three regional initiatives are closely aligned with the three regional programs of the Strategic Plan, namely the Regional Renewable Energy Program, the Regional Energy Efficiency Program, and the Cross-Cutting Regional Program.
These initiatives and programs collectively operationalize ECREEE’s 2023–2027 Strategic Plan, which is built upon three main strategic pillars: (i) Strengthening Institutional, Administrative, Financial, and Digital Governance; (ii) Improving the implementation of programs and projects; (iii) Enhancing partnerships and resource mobilization.
It is worth noting that this 2023–2027 Strategic Plan, adopted in March 2023 by the ECOWAS Ministers of Energy, is firmly rooted in ECOWAS Vision 2050 and the Commission’s 4×4 strategic management objectives.
Honorable Minister of Mines, Petroleum, and Energy of Côte d’Ivoire,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
After 14 years of existence, you can take pride in the achievements of ECREEE, which has become a global reference point for the establishment of the Global Network of Sustainable Energy Centres (GN-SEC). Furthermore, ECREEE has significantly contributed to advancing sustainable energy in West Africa through the operationalization of the ECOWAS Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Policies adopted in 2013 by the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government. Additionally, it has supported the development of the ECOWAS Regional Bioenergy Policy and the ECOWAS Policy for Gender Mainstreaming in Energy Access, set to be fully integrated by 2027. These policies set ambitious goals for achieving universal access to sustainable energy in the region by 2030. In 2023, the ECOWAS Policy and Strategic Framework on Green Hydrogen was also adopted.
To ensure the operationalization of these regional policies at the national level, ECREEE has supported the development of National Action Plans for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency across all Member States. The implementation of these regional policies and their corresponding national action plans has led to significant and satisfactory outcomes.
For instance, the installed capacity of grid-connected solar photovoltaic power plants in the ECOWAS region increased from 5 MW in 2010 to 900 MW in 2024, with projections of over 1 GW in 2025 and 5 GW by 2030. This represents a thousandfold increase in grid-connected solar photovoltaic capacity between 2010 and 2030, a dynamic that ECREEE is proud to have initiated.
It is also important to highlight the consolidation of the ECOWAS Certification System for Sustainable Energy Competencies, which is being deployed across all Member States in synergy with existing national frameworks. This system is undergoing an accreditation process in line with the highest regional and international standards.
However, significant challenges remain in the area of sustainable energy. These include limited technology transfer and a low level of local content in the design and implementation of medium- and large-scale solar photovoltaic power plants.
Another major challenge lies in the effective operationalization of the Regional Energy Efficiency Policy and its associated national action plans. While it is worth commending the energy efficiency initiatives implemented in Member States—such as the recent introduction of mandatory energy audits in Côte d’Ivoire for specific categories of establishments—it must be acknowledged that financial resources allocated to energy efficiency remain significantly lower compared to renewable energy.
The lack of measurable results and/or verifiable indicators has been identified as one of the key obstacles to promoting energy efficiency in West Africa. To address this, ECREEE, in collaboration with the African Energy Commission of the African Union (AFREC) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), organized a regional workshop in Cotonou in July 2024. This workshop focused on establishing a common system for collecting, processing, and managing energy efficiency data aligned with international standards.
Still on the subject of challenges, climate change is a major global threat, making West Africa even more vulnerable. The worrying security situation in West Africa reinforces this vulnerability. In this context, access to sustainable energy services continues to be a key development challenge in the ECOWAS region, and the transition to clean energy is becoming increasingly crucial, hence the theme of ESEF 2024: Towards a Just Energy Transition. This is why ECREEE is reinforcing its action and contribution to the efforts undertaken by Member States and other specialized ECOWAS agencies, in concert with Technical and Financial Partners.
Mr. Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy of Côte d’Ivoire,
Ladies and Gentlemen Ministers,
Allow me to share with you some of the highlights of ESEF 2024. ESEF 2024 is an action-oriented forum with a number of major pre-events. These include the workshop on the validation of the five-year Intervention Strategy 2025-2029 for the promotion of Efficient Appliances and Equipment in West Africa, supported by the Swedish Cooperation and UNIDO, and the Workshop on the Regional Project on Clean Cooking in West Africa, supported by the European Union. It’s also the place to share innovative projects like the one on Sustainable Off-Grid Energy Solutions for Health Centers in Africa presented by the International Institute of Refrigeration and its Partners. ESEF 2024 also sees the organization of the 4th ECOWAS-ECREEE Donor Consultation Committee Meeting and the 12th ECOWAS-ECREEE National Focal Points Meeting. Today’s plenary sessions will be devoted to the Ministerial Dialogue on Energy Transition and the High-Level Dialogue on the Energy, Water and Food Nexus in West Africa, as well as special sessions on Energy Efficiency with the launch of the e-Mobility Program in Côte d’Ivoire and the five-year Initiative 2025-2029 on Equipment and Appliances in West Africa supported by the Swedish Cooperation and UNIDO. Tomorrow will be devoted to technical sessions: Clean Energy Mini-grids, Clean Energy Corridor, Battery Energy Storage, Nexus Energy Water Supply, Green Hydrogen Development, Gender Mainstreaming in Energy Access, Sustainable Bioenergy and Clean Cooking, Energy Planning for Sustainable Development. The event will be crowned by a closing ceremony at which several players promoting sustainable energy in West Africa will be honored.
Before concluding, I would like to highlight the close collaboration between ECREEE and the other specialized ECOWAS energy agencies, namely the West African Power Pool (WAPP) and the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority (ARREC). Interaction with other specialized agencies such as the Agence Régionale pour l’Agriculture et l’Alimentation (ARAA), the Unité de Préparation et de Développement des Projets d’Infrastructures (PPDU), the Centre de Gestion des Ressources en Eau (CGRE) and the Centre pour le Développement du Genre (CCDG) is strengthened around the themes of the Energy-Water-Food Nexus and the effective integration of gender into our actions. Synergies of action with the Industry and Environment Departments are effective within the framework of joint initiatives. The presence at ESEF 2024 of these specialized agencies and departments is a perfect illustration of this.
Mr. Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy of Côte d’Ivoire,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In closing, I would like to express my gratitude to the Technical and Financial Partners for their constant support to ECREEE and their contribution to the organization of ESEF 2024. In particular, I would like to mention the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Development (BMZ), the GIZ Water and Energy For Food Project (WE4F) based in Abidjan, the GIZ ProMERC Project, the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF), WASCAL, UNIDO, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), the European Union (EU), the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECID), the African Development Bank (ADB), the International Institute of Refrigeration (III) through the SOPHIA project, the World Bank through the ROGEAP project, the International Development Research Centre of Canada (IDRC), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) and USAID. I would also like to thank the ESEF 2024 Support Partners who have kindly associated themselves with the ECREEE.
I would like to reiterate my thanks to the Côte d’Ivoire Minister in charge of Energy and to all the Ministers present at this ceremony for their constant support of ECREEE’s activities.
I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the excellent collaboration with the SIREXE Organizing Committee, our colleagues from the Côte d’Ivoire Ministry of Energy and the Event Organizer. Please accept my sincere thanks.
I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to all the Permanent Staff and Consultants of ECREEE for their commitment and professionalism in carrying out the Agency’s mission, which advocates universal access to sustainable energy for the urban and rural populations of our region, as well as greater competitiveness for our businesses.
Thank you all for the quality of your listening.
Mercei beaucoup. Muito Obrigado!