ALER was present at the SEforALL Forum and signed a partnership agreement
ALER was present at the SEforALL Forum that took place in Lisbon between the 2nd and 3rd of May under the overarching theme of ‘Leaving No One Behind’. This was an opportunity to promote ALER as well as to stablish new contacts and meet with the relevant stakeholders from the energy sector at international level.
The ceremony of the formal signature of the partnership agreement between ALER and the Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) initiative took place at the Forum. ALER’s President, Miquelina Menezes signed the Proud Partnership Agreement together with the CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, Rachel Kyte.
Under this agreement, SEforALL and ALER will cooperate in specifically tailored interventions in Portuguese-speaking countries, some of which lie on the critical path as identified by the latest Global Tracking Framework report, to create enabling market mechanisms for developing renewable synergies within the private sector, support non-profit entities and cutting-edge business models, and set best practices and standards at a local, regional and international levels.
Among the major interventions identified for collaboration are the organization of events, the first beeing the Guinea-Bissau sustainable energy investment workshop that took place on May 4th in Lisbon as a side-event aof the Forum.
Approximately 900 representatives from government, business, civil society and international organizations were informed about the latest evidence of progress on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 (to secure affordable reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all by 2030).
The first day focused on overcoming challenges. A highlight of the opening day was the presentation of the publication ‘Tracking SDG7: The Energy Progress Report,’ which benchmarks annual progress toward achieving the SDG 7 targets that directly relate to the SEforALL objectives. Despite encouraging progress in some countries and energy sectors, the 2018 report finds that overall progress toward the SDG 7 targets remains off track. In particular, the study reveals that one billion people – or 13% of the world’s population – still live without electricity, and an estimated 674 million people, mostly living in sub-Saharan Africa, will likely not have access to electricity by 2030. The slow uptake of clean cooking technologies is also highlighted, as is the less-than-hoped for increase in energy efficiency and renewables. Discussions throughout the day focused on the implications of these data on the ground and addressed remaining challenges and unmet needs.
The second day of the Forum focused on innovative solutions that can help deliver change at the speed and scale required to achieve SDG 7. Various commitments and new partnerships were announced under the campaign, ‘Shine: Investing in Energy Access for All,’ in which 35 philanthropists, faith leaders and private capital organizations have committed to advancing clean energy access.
If you want to know in more detail what happened at the Forum please check the summary.
Check here ALER's previous article about the partnership agreement between ALER and the SEforALL initiative here.