WORKING VISIT TO ECREEE – ECOWAS COMMISSIONERS OF GENDER & HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS AND INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

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Published On - May 17, 2015

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Two Commissioners from the ECOWAS Commission paid a working visit to the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) on February 3, 2015 with the purpose to familiarize themselves with the projects and activities of this laudable ECOWAS agency mandated to promote market penetration of renewable energy and energy efficiency in the sub-region.

Mr. Mahama Kappiah, Executive Director of ECREEE, welcomed the delegation and made a presentation related to the activities being carried out by the centre in the last five years. A special emphasis was given on the huge unexploited potential of renewable energy in the region and the existing constraints in terms of policies and regulatory frameworks hindering the development of these resources. He emphasized the roles ECREEE has played to have RE and EE policies formulated and adopted by the political authorities of the Commission. He also reiterated on the need for urgent development of the huge potentials of resources available to the region, noting the energy shortfalls in the sub-region.

In his intervention, Mr. Isaias Barreto Rosa – ECOWAS Commissioner for Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), congratulated the centre for the activities being carried out highlighting the added value of this centre to the ECOWAS Commission. Mr. Rosa challenged the Centre for a closer working collaboration with the Department for ICT, to take advantage of the infrastructures being built to harmonize the links between energy and information and telecommunication technologies.

Mrs. Fatimata Dia Sow – ECOWAS Commissioner for Gender and Humanitarian Affairs, showed particular interest on the ECOWAS Network on Gender Mainstreaming in Energy Access (www.ecowgen.ecreee.org). This is an ECREEE program with one of the objectives to ensure that gender issues are given priority when it comes to energy access. The commissioner congratulated the centre for such program and gave emphasis on how gender issues can be addressed across ECOWAS institutions and agencies.

The visit to ECREEE headquarters was preceded by donation ceremony of a Cheque in the amount of 300,000 USD, to the government of Cabo Verde to the displaced persons in Fogo Island – Cabo Verde due to a volcanic eruption.