Energy access for the poor: Can a decade make a difference? times a year by the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID). OFID is the development finance agency established in

Energy access for the poor:Can a decade make a difference?

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Yumkella on mobilizing funding for SE4ALL

Inaugural OFID Member Country Information Program a success

One Young World gathers in Johannesburg

Indonesia hosts World Culture Forum

COMMENT

Energy and sustainable development: Nexus approach holds the key 2

SPECIAL FEATURE

Energy access for the poor: Can a decade make a difference? 4

Standing on the heads of giants SE4ALL: A decade of innovation, opportunity and change 10

Applying the social business model to energy poverty 13

OFID in the Field 16

Kenya: Expanding geothermal capacity 18

Paraguay’s energy paradox 20

Pakistan: Catching a favorable wind 22

NEWSROUND

OFID launches inaugural Member Country Information Program 24

Energy challenges in the Arab regionOFID takes major role in Arab Forum for Environment and Development 26

The importance of inclusivity for development effectiveness 28

OFID and Mongolia: New partners 31

OFID Diary 33

Meetings attended by OFID 35

145th Governing Board photo gallery 36

Loan signature photo gallery 38

SPOTLIGHT

Sustainable intensification: Producing more food with fewer inputs 40

Mandela departs World mourns an icon 43

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for International Development(OFID).

OFID is the development financeagency established in January 1976

by the Member States of OPEC (the Organization of the Petroleum

Exporting Countries) to promoteSouth-South cooperation by extend-ing development assistance to other,

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CONFERENCE WATCH

International young leaders spearhead One Young World Summit 45

IWA Congress: Seeking solutions for water and sanitation services 49

Punta Cana Declaration pledges action on energy access 52

Dialogue and cooperation for change 54

PERSPECTIVES

Niger: Placing high hopes on the Kandadji Dam 56

MEMBER STATES FOCUS

UAE steps up investment in solar energy 58

Indonesia hosts first World Culture Forum 60

OPEC

164th Meeting of the OPEC Conference maintains ceiling 62

PUBLISHERS

THE OPEC FUND FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (OFID)

Parkring 8, P.O. Box 995, A-1010 Vienna, AustriaTel: (+43-1) 515 64-0; Fax: (+43-1) 513 92-38Email: [email protected]

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Mauro Hoyer Romero

EDITOR Audrey Haylins

CONTRIBUTORS Jennifer Adams, Reem Aljarbou, Namat Alsoof, Nadia Benamara, Sam Chukwudi, Damelys Delgado, Souhad Khriesat,Silvia Mateyka, Fuad Siala, Arya Gunawan Usis, Justine Würtz

PHOTOGRAPHS Abdullah Alipour Jeddi (unless otherwise credited)

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JANUARY 2014

hen the Millennium Development Goals werelaunched in 2000 amid great fanfare and expec-

tation, the omission of access to modern energy was,at best, a pragmatic oversight. As a topic of high geopo-litical sensitivity, it was easier to avoid than confront.

More than a decade later, the global community has f inally woken up to the irrefutable fact that povertyeradication and sustainable development are impossibleto achieve without access to reliable and affordablesources of energy.

At long last, energy poverty has penetrated the globalconsciousness and rides high on the internationalagenda.

Moreover, it is now acknowledged that a new sustain-able energy paradigm represents the key to a secure,equitable and prosperous future for our planet and itspeople.

This understanding will be reflected in the SustainableDevelopment Goals being drawn up to replace theMDGs after 2015.

While such realization is welcome, few would deny thatit is long overdue. The facts speak for themselves.

W

2 OFID QUARTERLY JANUARY 2014

COMMENT

Energy and sustainable development: Nexus approach holds the key

Despite living in an age of unprecedented scientif ic andtechnological progress, some 1.4 billion people aroundthe world are still without access to electricity. Almost40 percent of the global population relies on the burn-ing of biomass for cooking and heating.

As if these statistics weren’t damning enough, new research shows that there are around four million pre-mature deaths every year from household air pollutionproof that energy poverty doesn’t just deprive; it kills.

UN Decade of SE4ALL

As an institution that has long championed energypoverty eradication in both word and deed, OFID applauds the launch this January of the UN Decade ofSustainable Energy for All (2014- 2024).

Kandeh Yumkella, CEO of the SE4ALL Initiative, promises“a decade of innovation, opportunity and change” thatwill usher in a “global transformation” of energy systems.

The success of the Initiative which addresses access, eff iciency and renewables will hinge on the necessaryresources being mobilized.

The f igures are not for the faint-hear ted: someUS$600bn–US$800bn will be needed every year to realize all three goals by the deadline of 2030.

Equally important will be close cooperation amongstall stakeholders in order to maximize synergies andavoid wasteful duplication and overlap.

In the words of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:“Alone you can go fast; together we can go far.”

As a Member of the SE4ALL Advisory Board, OFID isproud to be a lead partner in this pioneering effort andis committed to using all resources at its disposal tostep up its interventions both at an advocacy and anoperational level.

Already, in the past two years alone (2012/21013),OFID’s energy sector approvals across all f inancingmechanisms have amounted to over US$915m.

These funds are supporting a broad range of projects,from large, capital-intensive investments such as powerplants and grid expansion to local, small-scale renew-able solutions, where speed is of the essence.

The strategic framework for these activities is OFID’s5-year-old Energy for the Poor Initiative (EPI), which isfunded through a revolving endowment of US$1bn, a sum pledged by the institution’s supreme body, theMinisterial Council, in its June 2012 Declaration on Energy Poverty.

Although the EPI was launched before SE4ALL, OFIDis pleased that its global par tners are all working towards the same goal.

Balancing the equation

For OFID, however, the challenge is not conf ined solelyto the issue of energy. Water and food security forman inseparable part of the same equation.

Just as water is needed for almost all kinds of energyproduction, so energy is required to treat and transportwater. Both water and energy are essential for growingand processing food.

Such interdependence can only increase in the future.

For this reason, OFID has placed the water-food-energynexus at the heart of its 2016-2025 strategic plan, inthe f irm conviction that only an integrated, holistic approach can address the challenges across the board,while compromising none.

This is truly the way forward and a principle that shouldform the bedrock of the global development agendapost-2015 and beyond. �

OFID QUARTERLY JANUARY 2014 3

SPECIAL FEATURE

PHOTO: MIKHAIL TOLSTOY/ALAMY

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It has taken a while—too longsome might say. But energypoverty has finally achieved itsrightful position at the top of the global development agenda.With the combined weight of the UN and the World Bankbehind the international Sustainable Energy for All(SE4ALL) initiative, hopes arehigh that energy poverty mightsoon be consigned to history. As the UN mobilizes support for its Decade of SE4ALL (2014–2024), the Quarterlyexamines the challenges ahead.

Energy access for the poor: Can a decade make a difference?

by Namat Alsoof and Fuad Siala


SPECIAL FEATURE

ust as the laws of physics dictate thatnothing can be produced without energy,

so the laws of economics require that energy isneeded for economic growth and wealth cre-ation.

Evidence based on historic data shows thatenergy consumption has increased over time inclose association with gross domestic product(GDP), both globally and in individual coun-tries, and that the two variables have similarfluctuations around the trend.

Looking at any given year, the data alsoshows that there is a strong relationship be-tween per capita energy use and per capita in-come across countries. In short, poor people useless energy.

The wealthiest five percent of the worldpopulation consumes almost one-quarter of allthe primary energy used on the planet, whilethe poorest 50 percent consume less than 10percent. In terms of electricity consumption,three-quarters of the world population arebelow the world average.

MDGs not achievable without energyIn September 2000, the United Nations Millen-nium Summit adopted the Millennium Declara-tion and announced eight Millennium Deve-lopment Goals (MDGs) to be achieved by 2015.

No specific MDG related to energy wasconsidered, despite the fact that access to mod-ern energy services is a catalyst to achieving thevery first MDG—the eradication of extremepoverty and hunger—as well as every other goal.

In November 2007, this oversight washighlighted in the Riyadh Declaration, whichwas issued at the conclusion of the Third Sum-mit of Heads of State and Government of OPECMember Countries.

The Declaration recognized that energy isessential for poverty eradication, sustainable de-velopment and the achievement of the MDGs.This prompted OFID to call for energy povertyeradication to be identified as the “Missing 9th

MDG.” The role of energy in sustainable develop-

ment was subsequently emphasized in numer-ous international forums, including the G8 Energy Ministers Meeting in Rome and theG20 Summit in Pittsburg—both in 2009—andthe March 2010 Ministerial Meeting of the International Energy Forum in Cancun.

But it wasn’t until the 2012 Rio+20 Confer-ence on Sustainable Development in Rio deJaneiro, Brazil that a united global response really took shape.

The Rio+20 outcome document set the stage fora comprehensive approach to energy povertythat would mobilize the necessary funding toprovide reliable and affordable modern energyservices for the poor in a way that was both eco-nomically viable and socially and environmen-tally acceptable.

The need to address energy poverty remainsoverwhelming, despite the massive gains madein global access to modern energy over the past20 years. During this time, an additional 1.7 bil-lion people gained the benefits of electrification,while 1.6 billion people secured access to gener-ally less-polluting non-solid fuels.

Yet, rapid demographic and economicgrowth has to some extend diluted the impactof these advances. The latest figures on globalenergy poverty are staggering: 1.4 billion peo-ple—one in five globally—have no access toelectricity, while some 2.7 billion people—nearly 40 percent of the world population—relyon biomass (wood, coal, charcoal, or animalwaste) for their basic needs.

The practice of using biomass for cookingkills nearly four million people a year, most ofthem women and children, from respiratorydisease caused by breathing toxic smoke.

Looking beyond 2015—from MDGs to SDGs As the expiration date for the MDGs looms,there is renewed political commitment to re-place it with a new set of goals known as the Sus-tainable Development Goals, or SDGs. The RioDeclaration (2012) confirmed that SDGs will re-place MDGs in 2015.

As attention is turning to the post-2015framework, there is increasing support for tack-ling energy poverty. Energy was one of the topthree priority areas in a questionnaire high-lighting priority areas for the SDGs in the UNSecretary-General’s initial input to the OpenWorking Group for Rio+20 in 2012.

In total 12 goals are proposed for the post-2015 agenda and one of them is to “Secure Sus-tainable Energy”. Within this goal there isexplicit mention of ensuring universal access tomodern energy services.

SE4ALL—global challenges need global actions The importance of energy for sustainable devel-opment has gained renewed momentum on the international stage in the last two years. In September 2011, the UN Secretary-Generallaunched his “Sustainable Energy for All”

The need to address energy poverty remainsoverwhelming, despite

the massive gains madein global access to

modern energy over thepast 20 years.

J


SPECIAL FEATURE

(SE4ALL) initiative to drive action and mobilizecommitments to achieve three objectives: uni-versal access to modern energy services; doublethe global rate of improvement in energy effi-ciency; and double the share of renewable en-ergy in the global energy mix.

The UN General Assembly Resolution65/151 designated 2012 as the “InternationalYear of Sustainable Energy for All,” recognizingthat access to modern, affordable energy serv-ices in developing countries is essential for sus-tainable development.

In its 2013 resolution 67/215, the UN Gen-eral Assembly emphasized the importance of along-term approach to global energy issues forsustainable development and for the elabora-tion of the post-2015 development agenda byunanimously declaring 2014–24 the “UNDecade of Sustainable Energy for All.”

SE4ALL—a partnership to mobilize action and deliver results To maintain momentum, tracking progress onthe goals of SE4ALL is essential. Doing so willclarify where the initiative stands, how variousactions are contributing to the three objectives,how much remains to be accomplished, andwhere more action is needed to achieve SE4ALL.

In May 2013, SE4ALL launched a GlobalTracking Framework with baseline energy dataand suggestions for indicators. This will form acritical part of the initiative’s activities in up-coming years.

Since its launch in September 2011, SE4ALLhas received more than 100 commitments to ac-tion from governments, businesses, interna-tional institutions and civil society.

Indeed, a growing number of governments,international agencies, non-governmental or-ganizations and businesses are working to over-come energy poverty.

At present, 81 developing countries havepartnered with the initiative. Gap analyses havealready been undertaken in about 50 countries,and in about 20 countries, action plans and/orinvestment prospectuses are being prepared.

Bridging the funding gap Energy poverty reduction is impossible toachieve without adequate access to investmentand finance. According to estimates from theInternational Energy Agency, the cumulativeinvestment required to achieve universal accessto modern energy by 2030 is US$48bn per year(on average), which is more than five times thelevel of 2009. The majority of this investment isrequired in sub-Saharan Africa.

GNI per capita versusenergy consumption per capita

According to estimatesfrom the International

Energy Agency, the cumulative investment

required to achieve universal access to

modern energy by 2030 is US$48bn per year.

Meeting this goal will require dramatic improve-ment in efforts by all stakeholders: govern-ments, the private sector, local communities,civil society and international organizations.

To bridge the investment gap, all availabletypes and sources of funding will need to betapped, including international funds, public-private partnerships, bank finance at multilat-eral, bilateral and local levels, as well as climatechange-related funds.

Leadership that catalyzes actionThe SE4ALL Initiative brings together top-levelleadership from all sectors of society, drawingon the global convening power of the UnitedNations and the World Bank.

The initiative’s high-level Advisory Board,co-chaired by the UN Secretary-General and theWorld Bank Group President, includes distin-guished global leaders from the private sector,government, UN/intergovernmental organiza-tions and civil society.

OFID’s Director-General, Suleiman J Al-Herbish, is a member of the Advisory Board, inrecognition of OFID’s pioneering advocacy andenergy poverty alleviation efforts through its in-novative Energy for the Poor Initiative since2008.

The Advisory Board provides strategicguidance to the initiative, and its membersserve as its global ambassadors, conductinghigh-level advocacy for action and mobilizingstakeholders on behalf of SE4ALL. �

Source: World Bank Open Data Services

Without access to Use of traditional electricity biomass

Population, Share of Population, Share of million population million population

DR Congo 62 91% 63 93%Ethiopia 65 77% 82 96%Kenya 34 81% 33 80%Nigeria 85 52% 122 75%Tanzania 39 85% 42 94%Uganda 30 85% 31 96%Other sub-Saharan Africa 281 61% 322 75%North Africa 1 1% 1 1%Africa 600 57% 696 67%Bangladesh 61 40% 149 91%China 3 0% 446 33%India 306 25% 818 66%Indonesia 66 27% 103 42%Pakistan 56 31% 112 63%Philippines 28 30% 47 50%Vietnam 4 2% 49 56%Rest of developing Asia 91 34% 145 50%Developing Asia 615 17% 1,869 51%Latin America 24 5% 68 15%Middle East 19 9% 9 4%World 1,258 18% 2,642 38%


SPECIAL FEATURE

� The Advisory Board has developed and en-dorsed a Global Action Agenda with 11 “actionareas” to achieve the initiative’s three objec-tives. These action areas provide a framework for organizing collaborative efforts across all relevant sectors. They also identify sets of high-impact opportunities that will drive progressand catalyze change.

The implementation plan for the initiativeincludes the development of a Framework for Action, a communications strategy andplan, and the creation of task forces assigned to assess the achievement of the three major objectives.

Clear and specific policies and strategies The availability of capital is a necessary but notsufficient condition to deliver access to modernenergy services. Strong political will, long-termgovernment commitment, good governanceand appropriate regulatory frameworks are pre-requisites to delivering the financing needed forenergy poverty eradication.

In addition, because investment in big-ticket,long lead-time energy projects requires a wideinvestor base, private and public sectors togetherwith development finance institutions, or DFIs,need to combine their different strengths.

In its own work in fighting energy poverty,for example, OFID always seeks to develop inno-vative business models that leverage their ownresources and involve the private sector, with itsefficiency and flexibility. Public-private partner-ships constitute one such attractive businessmodel. This, again, emphasizes the need to cre-ate a policy environment that is conducive tothe participation of private investors.

Balancing social, economic and climate needs Sustainable development must balance economicgrowth, social progress and protection of the en-vironment. But while renewable energy sourceswill have a far more important role in an immi-nent system of diversified energy mix, poor coun-tries cannot be deprived of energy for develop-ment during the transition period.

People without access to modern energy services by region

Source: IEA, WEO 2013


SPECIAL FEATURE

The socio-economic development of the devel-oping countries cannot be compromised byconsiderations for CO2 emissions. Such emis-sions, it has been established, would remainminor on a per capita basis compared withthose of the industrialized nations, even assum-ing the energy needs of the poor developingcountries are fully met. Efforts to eradicate en-ergy poverty must, therefore, be technologyneutral.

Water-food-energy nexus Another aspect of the balanced approach—andone that OFID strives for—is that related to the water-food-energy nexus. Until relatively recently, traditional development solutionstreated water, energy and food security sepa-rately.

But they need to be seen as interdepend-ent. Water is needed for almost all forms of en-ergy production; energy is needed to treat andtransport water; and both water and energy areneeded to grow food.

The optimum use of natural resources requiresthat these three sectors be treated in a holisticway (the nexus approach), as actions in one sec-tor usually have profound impacts on the othertwo.

A striking example of this is the irresponsi-ble expansion in the production of first-gener-ation biofuels in the second half of the lastdecade, which caused a huge rise in food prices,especially in the developing countries.

The interlinkages between water, food andenergy can only grow in the future, with popu-lation growth and urbanization creating in-creased demand for these three key resources.By 2030, it is predicted that the world will need30 percent more water, 40 percent more energyand 50 percent more food.

Any strategy that focuses on one part of thewater-food-energy nexus without considering itsinterconnections risks serious unintended con-sequences. For this reason, the nexus shouldform an integral part of the SDGs and any futuregoals that seek to eradicate poverty. �

The close linkages between the challengesposed by water, food andenergy demand that theybe addressed in a holistic,integrated manner.

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ith external walls made entirely ofglass, SE4ALL’s new offices offer a

panoramic vista across the River Danube tothe skyline of downtown Vienna and west-wards to the hills that form the eastern out-post of the Alps. It’s a view designed toinspire. And few people are more in need ofinspiration than Kandeh Yumkella.

Is he overwhelmed by the sheer enor-mity of the task he’s been set? On the con-trary, he affirms, with a defiant shake of hishead. “More than anything, I am excited tohave been given the opportunity to createsomething that did not exist before in theUN system.”

Indeed, he welcomes the fact that energypoverty has finally penetrated the globalconsciousness, after being left out of the Millennium Development Goals in2000.

“As a topic, energy used to be a discus-sion breaker,” he explains. “The momentyou put energy on the table, governmentswould take sides.

“What we’ve done in the past threeyears is change the narrative, by showingpoliticians that we are not talking aboutgeopolitics, but about human develop-ment. Finally, we are comfortable talkingabout energy without fighting over it.”

With typical modesty, Yumkella pays trib-ute to the partners that have joined forceswith SE4ALL to build a new global energyparadigm. Among them is OFID, which heacknowledges has played a “highly influen-tial role” in pioneering energy for the poor,modifying the narrative and helping to design the SE4ALL Initiative.

Equally crucial is the involvement ofthe World Bank, which came on board theInitiative in 2013 and whose President JimYong Kim has united with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to lead the move-ment.

“I am standing on the shoulders of giants, who are ready for action,” Yumkelladeclares. “And I hope that my small effortwill give them a solid institutional frame-work to work on the sustainable energyagenda over the next two decades.”

First-hand experienceAs a native of Sierra Leone, Yumkella admitsto having a strong emotional connection toenergy poverty.

“For me, this is a real subject that I feelhonored to work on. I know what energypoverty is,” he says, recalling his childhoodand university years. “I know what it meansto study by candlelight and to have no run-ning water because there’s no diesel to workthe pump.”

It is this personal experience that hasprepared him well for the job at hand. That,and his eight years as Director-General ofthe United Nations Industrial Develop-ment Organization.


SPECIAL FEATURE

Standing on the heads of giantsSE4ALL: A decade of innovation, opportunity and change

The paint is barely dry in the brand new Vienna HQ of the Sustainable Energyfor All Initiative. But, for CEO Kandeh Yumkella, there are more importantthings to think about than office fixtures and fittings. Heading his agenda is

the US$600bn–US$800bn a year needed to finance the initiative’s three goals.Here, he talks exclusively to the Quarterly about the challenges ahead.

by Audrey Haylins

W

Kandeh Yumkella, CEO of SE4ALL, is excited rather than daunted by the challenge of his new role.

Click to watch interview

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28ArbnzOvpY&list=PLNQp894Yw1rLlNGpt-NcCdOntB-xkoutT

“I am well aware of the social dimensions ofenergy poverty. I also know that, for eco-nomic development, job creation andwealth creation, an affordable, reliable en-ergy supply is crucial,” he states, referringto studies which show that Africa loses twoto three percent of its GDP due to a lack ofenergy.

New energy paradigmWe are talking in Yumkella’s private office,which has a surprisingly lived-in air consid-ering the short time it has been occupied.Artifacts from his many travels are scatteredon every surface, alongside framed photo-graphs, awards and other mementoes of anillustrious career.

He has just returned to Vienna follow-ing a hectic month that saw him traversethe globe, drumming up support for thecause. He’s been to three continents: NorthAmerica, Asia and Africa.

There are no signs of fatigue, however,as he speaks animatedly of his plans—inparticular, for the launch in January 2014of the UN Decade of SE4ALL.

The kick-off event—at the Future En-ergy Summit in Abu Dhabi —will serve as aspringboard for activities to mobilize in-vestment and support for the initiative. Re-gional launches will follow throughout theyear.

Of the total estimated US$600bn–US$800bn needed to fund SE4ALL,Yumkella judges that the bulk by far will berequired to improve energy efficiency in de-veloped and emerging economies.

He is full of praise for energy-richcountries such as Brazil, Norway and SaudiArabia, which have all taken an aggressivestance on renewables.

“Quite simply, it makes good eco-nomic sense,” he says. “It requires a lot ofcash, but we prefer to look at it as an oppor-tunity for economic growth and wealth cre-ation. In fact, we’re calling it the ThirdIndustrial Revolution.”

In comparison, the investmentneeded to achieve the first goal of universalaccess to modern energy services is a rela-tively modest US$50bn. This, Yumkellahastens to caution, will not make it easier toattain, due to the complexity of the chal-lenge in the poorest countries.

“This is an investment-driven vision,not an aid-dependent one,” he asserts, al-luding to the need for sweeping energy sec-tor reform in developing countries.

“Energy infrastructure is like any otherkind of investment. It requires an enablingenvironment, clear investment protectionpolicies, incentives and regulations thatgive an investor confidence in the securityof his investment. At the moment, theseare lacking.”

This, he suggests, is where multilateral in-stitutions like the World Bank and OFID,can make a difference. In demonstratingtheir willingness to assist a country—byputting money into a project or helping todevise a long-term energy strategy for example—they can reduce the risk factorand encourage investment from the privatesector, including from large corporationsand pension funds, which have the deepestpockets.

“We want to reduce energy poverty,but in a way that delivers social benefits andat the same time is both commercially vi-able and environmentally friendly. This isthe complexity of Energy for All that keepsme awake,” says Yumkella.

Three pillar packageThe SE4ALL chief is keen to point out theholistic nature of the initiative, which hedescribes as a “global transformation” ofenergy systems. “Our three targets—univer-sal access, doubling energy efficiency anddoubling the share of renewables—repre-sent a narrative about changing the globalenergy mix, for rich countries as well aspoor countries.”

He stresses, however, that the mainmessage is “sustainability for all” and thateach nation should address the target ortargets that are relevant for its own energysecurity.

“The beauty of our narrative is that itencompasses access, efficiency and renew-ables as a package. None of them is sepa-rate. In every country, each of the pillars isrelevant to some degree, but it is up to thecountry to decide which one is more im-portant,” he reiterates.

For the developing countries in partic-ular, there are strong linkages between allthree goals. While access is the driver ofpoverty alleviation, for instance, renew-ables can very often provide the quickestsolution.

“We mustn’t necessarily separatethese two aspects,” Yumkella argues, point-ing out that off-grid, or mini-grid solutionscan be provided to a community in 12 to 18months, while a dam can take up to sevenyears to complete.

With regard to efficiency, he cites datathat shows some developing countries ex-perience power losses of 20 to 30 percentdue to inefficient generating and transmis-sion systems. “This is another dimensionthat feeds into the overall picture and needsurgent attention,” he states.

Synergies for progressYumkella professes to being greatly encour-aged by the global response to SE4ALL sinceits launch in late 2011. “Everybody wants toget involved,” he proclaims, revealing thattheir database so far includes around 1,500NGOs, social entrepreneurs and civil soci-ety groups.

As a reflection of the cross-cutting nature of energy, many of these groups areinvolved in indirectly-related activitiessuch as health, food and water.

“My biggest headache now is get-ting everyone to sing from the same hymn sheet!” says Yumkella, with mock �


SPECIAL FEATURE

“We want to reduce energy poverty, but in a way that delivers social benefits

and at the same time is both commercially viable

and environmentally friendly.”

� exasperation. “The goodwill is there, butwe need to get people to agree to work to-gether to get a bigger bang for the buck. It’sall about collective actions for speed andscale-up. As Mr Ban said: ‘Alone you can gofast; together we can go far.’”

Yumkella is hopeful that a large eventplanned for later in 2014 in New York willprovide the perfect setting for improvingsynergies. Bringing together all stakehold-ers, the event will provide an opportunityfor companies, NGOs, financial institutionsand governments to showcase successfulinitiatives.

Already, some outstanding case stud-ies are in evidence, including China, Brazil,Vietnam and South Africa for access; Den-mark and Japan for efficiency; and Austriafor renewables.

“We can see real signs of progress and hope in developing nations too,” saysYumkella, who speaks of Bhutan as a“dream country” for what it has achievedwith regard to all three pillars of SE4ALL,“exclusively on the initiative of the govern-ment.”

Decade of SE4ALLFor the first year of the Decade of SE4ALL,Yumkella discloses that the main themewill be energy and women, in recognitionof the severe burden energy poverty placeson women and children.

“Women suffer the most; they are theones providing the bulk of the energy,” hestates, adding: “Clean cooking solutionsalone could save four million lives everyyear.”

The 2014 rollout will therefore includea series of awareness campaigns “to makepeople realize that things can be done dif-ferently where women are concerned; thatthere are other ways to provide energy.”

He reveals that the first year of theDecade will also see some new targets beingadded to the Initiative. Like OFID’s medium-term strategic plan, the water-food-energynexus features strongly, as does energy andeconomic empowerment.

“We are taking the [water-food-energy] nexus very seriously,” he says, dis-closing that working groups have been set

up to organize sets of indicators and targetsfor energy/water and energy/food.

“These new targets will help to keepthe nexus message, which is something weare developing for eventual inclusion in thepost-2015 agenda,” he adds.

Another priority for 2014 is to test cer-tain business models in a select group ofaround 20 countries, the objective being tomove from words to action.

“Everyone is committed, but now weneed to show evidence of how things canwork on the ground,” says Yumkella. “Thisis our mantra: to change commitments intokW-hours for real people.”

Also flagged for greater attention in2014 is work on energy efficiency, particu-larly in buildings, transport and industry.“Our aim is to explore innovation in citiesaround the world and show how it can be copied and scaled up—even in Africa,”explains Yumkella.

He pauses and glances at his watch before making a final statement: “It’s not about complaining or showing thecalamity that can happen. What we want to deliver—throughout the Decade—is amessage of innovation, opportunity andchange.”

And on that positive note, our inter-view draws to a close. Yumkella has anotherpressing engagement: an end-of-year socialgathering with his staff.

As he delivers words of thanks and en-couragement to his small team, my eyes aredrawn to the stunning backdrop. Beyondthe wall of glass, midwinter has brought anearly dusk. In the growing darkness, thou-sands of lights cast a reassuring glow acrossthe city. It is the perfect symbol of hope.

Yumkella need look no further for hisinspiration. �


SPECIAL FEATURE

The Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) Initiative has become the 10th member ofthe Vienna Energy Club. It was formally enrolled at the VEC’s 9th meeting on December 4, 2013.

The VEC now consists of 10 energy-related international organizations, all seatedin Vienna: the Energy Community Secretariat, the International Atomic EnergyAgency, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, the InternationalPeace Institute, OFID, OPEC, the Organization for Security and Cooperation inEurope, the Renewable Energy and Energy Eff iciency Par tnership, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and SE4ALL.

While these individual organizations vary in their core missions, size and focus, the shared aim of the Club is to provide a platform for discussion and to createawareness of energy-related issues bringing forward the sustainable energy agenda.The Club generally meets two to three times a year in Vienna.

The members of the VEC have promoted their host city Vienna to an internationalenergy hub, putting energy on the global agenda and creating a better under-standing of this important topic. Vienna plays a central role in the global energy community.

SE4ALL joins Vienna Energy Club

n an age blighted by greed and self-inter-est, it is refreshing to come across people—

especially young people—who are driven by thegreater social good. Such was the motivation sixyears ago of Stanford Design School students SamGoldman and Ned Tozun, when they came upwith a prototype product and a plan to bring safe,renewable and inexpensive lighting to poor com-munities around the globe.

The outcome—their social enterprised.light—has grown into the acknowledged globalleader in solar lantern technology. More thanthat, it has established itself as an outstanding ex-ample of the social business model. So much so,that in 2011, Goldman and Tozun were recog-nized by Forbes Magazine as two of the world’stop 30 social entrepreneurs.

Many plaudits have followed since ford.light, including the prestigious Zayed FutureEnergy Prize in 2013.

Impact over profitWith 30 years of experience in consumer prod-ucts and a passion for base-of-the-pyramid con-sumer businesses, Donn Tice has been workingwith the d.light co-founders since 2008 to helprealize their vision. He too is inspired by the en-terprise’s humanitarian ideals.

“From the beginning, d.light has been so-cially motivated,” Tice tells the Quarterly. “Oursingle purpose is to bring light and power that’sboth affordable and reliable to people in the de-veloping world.”


SPECIAL FEATURE

Applying the social business modelto energy poverty

Since launching its innovative range of solar lanterns in 2007, social enterprise d.light has transformed the lives of more than 25 million people who have sporadic or no access to electricity. Its goal? To boost this number to 100 million by 2020. Here, CEO, Donn Tice, explains d.light’s humanitarian ethos, its phenomenal success and its plans for the future.

by Audrey Haylins

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“Our single purpose is to bring light and

power that’s both affordable and reliable

to people in the developing world.”

As is the core principle of any social business,d.light does not pursue profit for profit’s sake. Allgains are ploughed back in the company.

“We are run on a commercial basis to the ex-tent only that we can make our impact sustain-able from an economic perspective,” explainsTice.

“We have no plans to pay dividends to ourinvestors. We are reinvesting all of our profitabil-ity into growth and into new products and distri-bution to reach more people.”

Tice considers d.light fortunate to have investors that are some of the leaders and earliestparticipants in what has come to be known as social impact investing. They include the Omod-yar Network, the Acumen Fund and Gray GhostVentures.

Since early on though, private investmenthas also been significant. Says Tice: “Private equity investors that are more traditional in theirfocus really bring an important perspective to ourgovernance with regard to having a sustainableimpact on the world.”

It is a formula that is working well. Today,the company serves over 40 countries, throughover 10,000 retail outlets, 10 field offices and four regional hubs. In an average month, it sellsover 500,000 units of its durable, lightweightproducts.

Country rollout is based on criticality ofneed, with priority given to those where eitherthere is no electricity or reliability of supply is aserious problem. �

Donn Tice, CEO of d.light

OFID recently teamed up with the Shell Foundation to support d.light roll-out in Kenya and Tanzania, two of themost severely energy-poor countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

In both countries, kerosene is the mostwidely used source of lighting, costingup to US$7.50 per month and placingconsiderable strain on households witha typical per capita income of just US$2 per day.

The aim of the twelve-month projectwas “to empower formerly energy-poorconsumers to live a life of new free-doms and opportunity.”

By the end of the period, almost 85,000units had been sold, empowering thelives of some 424,000 people, morethan triple the original target.

Donn Tice, d.light CEO, cites the effec-tive trial of a new f inancing strategy for the overwhelming success of theproject.

This involved the setting up of a revolving capital pool, which made low-interest loans available to rural distribu-tors to boost their working capital andenable them to buy and stock large supplies of the lanterns.

Explained Tice: “The grant from OFIDand the Shell Foundation enabled us totest the ability of distributors to keepthe product in stock when they had thenecessary f inancial support.

“What we found was that the productswere in stock all the time, sales weretwice what we expected, and we wereable to sustain much wider and morecontinuous distribution than would havebeen the case otherwise.”

As all loan repayments, including inter-est, are re-injected back into the revolving fund, the scheme is not onlyself-sustaining but growing year-on-year.

Another crucial element of the projectwas the training programs that were

organized for distributors and brand activators to help them develop moreprofessional business skills and becomemore effective sales agents.

Duncan, a young family man in Kisumu,Kenya, is making the most of this oppor-tunity. As well as selling d.light products,he works in a local bar which rents outlanterns for a small nightly sum to people who want to continue runningtheir kiosks after sunset. In this way,Duncan creates demand and consis-tently sells about four units a week.

The marketing chain is supported by brand building and consumer awareness activities that educate poten-tial customers about the benef its ofd.light lanterns and create free home-trial opportunities. This too, has been a major factor in the success of theproject.

� Tice attributes d.light’s remarkable growth totwo key drivers: one, the company’s deep-seatedcommitment to designing the best products pos-sible to meet the needs of the target market.

And, two, how hard they have worked atbuilding a sophisticated sales and distributionnetwork that can get the products to the con-sumers who really need them.

Empowering livesThe vast majority of these customers are to befound in rural villages, where there is no access tothe electricity grid.

People like Eva and Carol, who run adjacentstalls at the nightly fish market in Nakuru, Kenya.Their bright d.light lanterns make their displaysmore inviting and attract more customers. Thetwo women are excited about the extra moneytheir business is generating and about the savingsthey are making through no longer having to purchase kerosene. They have big plans for thefuture.

Or Daw, a midwife and nurse in Myanmar.Her d.light lantern allows her to deliver babiessafely and to visit sick patients after dark. She isconvinced the strong light comforts them.

Janendra, a farmer in rural India, uses hisd.light lantern to harvest at night. “It works in allweather conditions and the light is brighter,” hesays. For his daughter, the lantern has taken awayher fear of having an open flame close to herschool books. Now she can study whenever andwherever she likes and for longer.

According to Tice, one of the reasons thelanterns are so popular is that, unlike similar


SPECIAL FEATURE

Innovative pilot scheme rolls out light across Africa

Eva and Carol are convinced thattheir d.light lanterns attract morecustomers to their fish stalls at thenightly market.

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products, they live up to expectations. Not onlyare they high-performing, but they have an average lifespan of well over five years and, at just US$8 for the basic model, are very afford-able.

“Our consumers are not wealthy people,” hestresses. “How they invest their limited disposableincome and capital is a really serious and thought-ful decision, so we work really hard at making surethat our products keep their promise.”

Part of this promise is a three-year warranty,whereby lanterns are replaced with no questionsasked.

“This is how we create trust with our cus-tomers,” says Tice, who points also to the essen-tial contribution of d.light “brand activators” insecuring customer confidence. “Our brand acti-vators are members of the local community andare known. They are seen to be using the lanternsthemselves and can overcome skepticism by ex-plaining the benefits of the product and allowingpeople to test it.”

d.light say that people who upgrade to solarlighting report improved health and safety, re-duced eyestrain, better performance in schooland an ability to generate more income.

Measurable resultsTrue to its social enterprise ethos, the companymeasures its success not by turnover or profit, butby what it calls a “social impact dashboard,”which tracks results month by month.

The numbers are huge. As of November 30,2013, the data shows more than 25 million livesempowered; 6.3 million schoolchildren reachedwith solar lighting; US$767m saved in energy-related expenses; and 7.2bn productive hourscreated for working or studying after nightfall.

As for the future, Tice reveals that d.lightforesees itself becoming “a full-range supplier ofconsumer power needs in the developing world.”Diversification is already underway, with the in-troduction 18 months ago of a first home andbusiness system.

“The system is relatively small-scale anddoesn’t meet the full power requirements of allour customers, so we will continue to expand inboth directions,” he says, clearly relishing thechallenges ahead.

With d.light’s track record so far, there canbe little doubt that whatever they aim for will beachieved … and then some. �


SPECIAL FEATURE

Being able to study atnight will help this childperform better in school,thanks to d.light’s solar lamp.

PHOTO: LUCIANO CANDISANI/MINDEN PICTURES/CORBIS

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OFID in the Field

In fighting energy poverty, OFID delivers a wide range of solutions tosuit all kinds of circumstances. Fromlarge, capital-intensive investmentsto innovative, small-scale communityschemes. From gas pipelines andpower plants to solar lanterns andclean cookstoves. The technology utilized is based on need and not onany preference on OFID’s part. Theend-result—providing people withthe energy they need to live safe, productive lives—is far more impor-tant than the fuel source.

In the following pages, Damelys Delgado, highlights impact storiesfrom Kenya, Paraguay and Pakistan,which show how countries can over-come energy poverty by making themost of their natural resources.

17

arly each morning Patricia Onyango takesthe “matatu” (public transportation) to

her work as a waitress in a fancy hotel in down-town Nairobi. Today her sister, Irene, who usuallywalks with her, is sick, so Patricia has to make herown way to the matatu station.

She walks quickly, ever fearful of what canbefall women walking alone in the dark throughthe Mukuru slum. Patricia has been assaultedonce before. Not for the first time, she wishes theroads were lit. Street lighting would make such adifference to the security of her community.

Energy access critically lowCompared to its East African neighbors, Kenyahas a well-developed social and physical infra-structure. Its levels of electricity production andconsumption, however, are among the lowest inthe world.

According to data collected from industry,national surveys and international sources, indi-cators provided by the World Bank point out thatjust 18 percent of Kenya’s 43 million inhabitantshave access to electricity.

This is partly the result of a lack of invest-ment in the sector, but is also due to the prohibi-tive cost of a household connection, which at32,000 Kenyan Shillings is the equivalent ofUS$400.

Given that 43 percent of Kenyans live onUS$1.25 per day or less, the vast majority simplycannot afford the outlay for an electricity connec-tion let alone the running costs.

The sector is beset by other constraints aswell. The amount of electricity available for con-sumption relies greatly on hydropower sources,which account for approximately 50 percent ofthe county’s total power generation capacity.

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Kenya: Expanding geothermal capacity

Hydropower plants, however, are heavily depend-ent on weather conditions.

To make the landscape even bleaker, the sit-uation is aggravated by limited transmission anddistribution networks, high rates of electricityloss and the lack of qualified personnel.

In 2005 the government launched Vision2030, which outlines Kenya’s long term eco-nomic development plan for transforming thecountry into a middle income nation within 25years. To achieve this goal, the government is re-lying greatly on international providers as well asthe private sector.


OFID IN THE FIELD

By increasing access to electricity, this OFID-sponsoredproject promises improved life opportunities for hundredsof thousands of families and small businesses.

OFID joins the battle Through its Energy for the Poor Initiative, OFIDapproved in 2012 a US$15m loan to help financethe Kenya Electricity Expansion Project (KEEP)along with a number of other co-financiers, in-cluded the Kenyan Government.

This project is designed to provide access tomodern, clean and affordable energy services byupgrading the existing energy infrastructure. Thiseffort will result in approximately 300,000 newconnections for households, small businesses andpublic institutions.Syahrul Luddin, OFID public sector operationsofficer in charge of Kenya, explained that theproject aimed to increase the capacity, effi-ciency, and quality of electricity supply, as wellas the expansion of electricity access in urbanand rural areas.

He pointed out that, for Kenya to achieve its economic vision, massive investment was re-quired in the energy sector.

“Fortunately, the government with the sup-port of the donor community has identified andprepared the necessary detailed investmentplans,” he added, noting that OFID had beenclosely involved in these discussions.

“OFID’s role in the development of thecountry’s energy sector is now significant, withabout US$60m committed through the publicand private sector windows for investment prima-rily in rural electrification, transmission, andwind power,” Luddin revealed.

A host of benefitsKEEP is a high priority project for the governmentand will directly support the realization of Vision2030 by doubling Kenya’s geothermal capacityfrom 140MW to 280MW to represent 20 percentof the country’s total installed capacity. This willreduce dependence on hydropower.

Project activities include the expansion ofan existing geothermal plant and the construc-tion of a new one, both in the Rift Valley provincearound 200 km west of Nairobi.

Additional components involve the exten-sion of transmission and distribution networksin the Northeastern, Western, and Nyanzaprovinces, which are home to around 12 millionpeople. The provinces are important productioncenters for commercial wheat, maize, tea, sugarand dairy products, and host to many small businesses.

By increasing access to affordable electricity,KEEP will help raise living standards, promote thedevelopment of small enterprises, and expand access to communications and technology, likeradio, TV and Internet.

The project will also generate employmentopportunities. And, for sure, with more streetlighting, women in a similar situation to Patriciawill be able to walk to the matatu station safely,even when they go alone. �


OFID IN THE FIELD

(From right to left) Fuad Albassam, OFID Assistant Director-General for Public Sector Operations,Suleiman J Al-Herbish, OFID Director-General, and Syahrul Luddin, OFIDpublic sector operations officer, madea site visit last year to review theprogress of the OFID-co-financedproject which, when completed, is expected to double Kenya’s geothermal capacity.

The whisperings of the forest are silenced by the roar of a huge waterfall. It is the Itaipúhydroelectric dam, a massive structure on the Paraná River at the border between Braziland Paraguay. With its abundant water resources, Paraguay has built more dams for thesame purpose. Why, then, does the country suffer from energy poverty?

Paraguay’s energy paradox

ince 1977, when its construction began,over 17 million people from 197 countries

have visited the Itaipú dam, a magnificent struc-ture of great interest to tourists. It is 65 storieshigh, requiring the effort of 40,000 men workingover seven years to build the world’s largest re-newable clean-energy generator.

With this masterpiece of modern engineer-ing, Paraguay became one of the largest exportersof hydroelectric power in the world. Paradoxi-cally, the landlocked country of 6.6 million peo-ple has one of the lowest levels of electricityconsumption in Latin America.

“That is exactly why people usually refer toParaguay as one of the greenest countries in theworld”, explained Rómulo Martínez, OFID public

sector operations officer in charge of Paraguay’sprojects.

“It not only has one of the world’s largestworking sources of hydroelectricity, but alsomakes one of the smallest carbon footprints,mainly because of its relatively small size andpopulation.”

The dam, owned by both countries, wasbuilt to harness the immense water resources ofParaguay and Brazil, and has the capacity to gen-erate 14,000 MW.

Together with Argentina, Paraguay also co-owns the Yacyretá dam, site of another major hy-dropower plant, with a capacity of 3,200 MW.Both Itaipú and Yacyretá, are on the Paraná River,which is second in length only to the Amazon.


OFID IN THE FIELD

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PHOTO: SUE CUNNINGHAM PHOTOGRAPHIC/ALAMY

Paraguay is the sole owner of the Acaray hydro-electric dam, which has a much lower capacity of210 MW and supplies three percent of the coun-try’s electricity demand.

The excess energy produced at the bi-national power plants of Itaipú and Yacyretá isimmense in regional terms and is exported toneighboring countries.

For Paraguay, the surplus represents 30 timesthe electricity consumption of its industrial sec-tor. Meanwhile, the World Bank estimatesParaguay’s domestic consumption per capita at1,000 kWh/year, equivalent to one third of theconsumption levels of Brazil and Chile.

While Paraguay is blessed with an abundanthydropower generation capacity, key weaknessesin transmission and distribution hinder eco-nomic productivity in both rural and urban areasand constrain export prospects.

Electricity provision is deficient in bothquality and reliability, with high systems losses.With transmission systems operating close totheir technical limits, voltage fluctuations andoutages are commonplace, especially duringwarm weather, heavy rain and thunderstorms.

November 19, 2013, was a typical example.A one-day storm battered 12 departments, out ofa total of 17, affecting up to 100,000 users.

Speaking to the press, Víctor Romero, presi-dent of the National Electricity Administration(ANDE), revealed that 90 percent of the country’sdistribution system comprised bare overheadwires. “We are working now on the possibility ofreplacing them with insulated overhead wires,”he stated. To do so countrywide would require aninvestment of US$1.5bn.

The electricity sector relies on ANDEANDE is responsible for the Paraguayan electric-ity sector, operating the entire electricity market,including tariff set-up, generation, transmissionand distribution, as well as research into financ-ing options. Its mandate is to provide electricityservice to all eligible customers.

In 2009, ANDE submitted a ten-year masterplan with three broad objectives: reducingpower losses in distribution and transmission; expanding transmission system capabilities; andenhancing efficiency and revenues by increasingthe exporting capacity of ANDE to neighboringcountries.

The costs associated with the master planhave been estimated at US$1.3bn, with relativelylittle of the necessary financing yet secured. Thecountry thus relies heavily on multilateral insti-tutions, like the World Bank, OFID, the Andean

Development Corporation (CAF) and other re-gional players.

In 2010, the government of Paraguay declared a state of emergency in the electricitysector. As the responsible party, ANDE was calledupon to obtain long-term financing to guaran-tee uninterrupted, reliable access to electricity services, with regional integration and socio-economic development as main priorities.

Within this framework, ANDE established a program in which the major investments included the construction of a new high-voltagetransmission system, along with strengthening of the existing system in the Eastern and Centralregions.

OFID and CAF: supporting solutions Jointly with CAF, OFID is supporting the Na-tional Interconnected Electricity System Upgrad-ing Project, which is being managed andexecuted by ANDE and covers the Eastern and theCentral Regions of Paraguay.

The main objective is to improve the avail-ability, reliability and quality of electrical powerto poor and rural communities in 14 regional departments, in the Eastern Region. This repre-sents almost 40 percent of the country’s total areaand 97 percent of the total 6.1 million population.The 500,000 inhabitants of Asunción, the capi-tal, will also benefit from the upgraded system.

The project consists of the construction of a220 kV transmission line with substations fromItakyry to Salto del Guaira in eastern Paraguay, andtwo new tranches of 66 kV transmission lines,also equipped with substations and complemen-tary/adaptation works for the future constructionof a 500-kV line. These will connect one of thelargest generating units in the south, the Yacyretápower plant, with Asunción.

OFID’s support will help stabilize the powerload on the national grid, thereby enhancing thereliability of the transmission systems and reduc-ing losses. The project is an important step to-wards the eradication of energy poverty, whichparadoxically, is still affecting some parts ofParaguay, especially given the increasing domes-tic demand, which stands at 2,300 MW.

According to Martínez, the OFID/CAF re-sponse was particularly timely, considering theneed for the country to be better prepared for thenew 300 km-long, 500-kV transmission line,which will connect the border with Argentina tothe Asunción area. The line, the largest in thecountry, is planned to enter into operations by2018.

Then blackouts will be a thing of the past. �


OFID IN THE FIELD

OFID’s support will help stabilize the power

load on the national grid,thus reducing losses

and enhancing reliabilityof the transmission

systems.

Pakistan: Catching a favorable wind

Wind power is sustainable, clean and safe, creates jobs and is economically competitive—and Pakistan has it in abundance. With the help of OFID and the private sector, steps are being taken to harness this untapped resource to satisfy an energy-starved population.

eavy monsoon rains throughout 2010caused one of the worst natural disasters

Pakistan has experienced in over 50 years. Ap-proximately one-fifth of the total land area wasflooded, directly affecting about 20 million peo-ple. Damage was estimated at over US$10.9bn,around one-third of the country’s annual budget.

The floods were the final straw for thiscountry of 193 million people, the sixth mostpopulated nation on Earth. Already embattledby the global recession and the sharp rise in in-ternational food prices, Pakistan’s economicgrowth, which averaged 7.3 percent between2004 and 2007 and was 4.1 percent in 2008,ground to a halt.

Against these odds, the only option for thesecond largest economy in South Asia was tobegin again, using every possible means.

Energy shortfalls constitute a major limita-tion on Pakistan’s economic progress. Insufficientinvestment in the electricity network causes fre-quent power cuts, often lasting several hours in themain cities, and in extreme cases, up to 18 hours. Tomake matters worse, reliance on power plants thatrun on costly imported fuel has created tremen-dous budgetary pressure on the Government.

During the night of February 24, 2013, a nation-wide blackout left the entire country withoutelectricity for almost two hours. The media re-ported: “Energy-starved Pakistan experiencesdaily power outages but complete breakdowns arerare.” Thousands of Pakistanis flooded Twitter toreport #blackout.

Revealing the wind potentialDue to the chronic scarcity of energy, and takinginto account the future needs of the electricitysector, the government, in 2006, established theAlternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) todevelop a national strategy for the use of alterna-tive renewable energy resources.

The diversification of energy resourceswould reduce the country’s huge oil import bill.Currently, Pakistan produces 21.6 MW of energyfrom diverse sources, of which thermal energyrepresents 67 percent (14.8 MW); hydroelectricpower 30.3 percent (6.5 MW) and nuclear energy2.14 percent (462 MW).

According to a report by the United NationsDevelopment Program, Pakistan has very highelectricity production costs, but has immensewind resources that have not yet been harnessed.

To tap into this potential, the AEDB is en-couraging investment from the private sector byoffering tax breaks and other financial incentivesfor the installation of wind farms in selected areas.

The wind map of Pakistan was developed bythe National Renewable Energy Laboratory(USA), in collaboration with USAID, the PakistanMeteorological Department and AEDB.

The results show that the Ghoro–Keti Ban-dar Wind Corridor, which runs 60 km along thecoastline of Sindh Province and more than 170km inland, has the potential to generate morethan 50,000 MW of electricity. Coastal areas ofBalochistan province and some northern areasalso possess usable wind resources.


OFID IN THE FIELD

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Engineers prepare to erect a windturbine as part of plans to harnessPakistan’s immense but largely untapped wind power resources.

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OFID supports wind powerIn a joint effort with the Islamic DevelopmentBank, OFID, through its Private Sector Facility, issupporting the construction of two wind farmswhich will add 100 MW of power to the nationalgrid.

The total cost is around US$260m, which isfunded on a combination of debt and equity.OFID is participating under an Islamic financingstructure utilizing both instruments, with the eq-uity component channeled through the IslamicInfrastructure Fund, alongside the Islamic Devel-opment Bank (IsDB) and the Asian DevelopmentBank. Through risk participation with the IsDB,OFID has paved the way to tap the enormous po-tential of wind energy in Pakistan. The successfulimplementation of these projects is expected tobring in further investment for the developmentof more wind farms in the country.

Collectively known as the “Fauji Wind Proj-ects,” two wind power plants, each with a capac-ity of 50 MW, will encourage the use of windresources for low-carbon power generation. Onceoperational, the new wind farms will reduce re-liance on imported oil and diesel fuel for powergeneration, thereby relieving pressure on thecountry’s foreign reserves.

The power plants are located in the wind corridorapproximately 50 km southeast of the city ofKarachi on Kutti Kun New Island.

Said Taufik Ridha, OFID private sector oper-ations officer in charge of the project, explainedthat the electricity generated by the new plantswould be dispatched into the national grid andsold to the National Transmission and DispatchCompany to help fulfill the country’s electricity requirements.

Taufik highlighted the severity of the powerdeficit in Pakistan, where load shedding androlling blackouts are negatively affecting thelivelihoods of the people and the business com-munity.

“This project will bring numerous benefitsto the various stakeholders by reducing thecountry’s electricity supply gap, decreasing dependence on expensive oil imports for powergeneration and harnessing the country’s renew-able energy potential,” Taufik stated.

“Other aspects that need to be highlightedare the synergies between the co-financing de-velopment finance institutions and the localcommercial banks involved. This project is alsoone of the few to be fully financed under aShariah compliant Islamic financing structure,”he added. �


OFID IN THE FIELD

The Fauji Wind Projectswill add an extra 100MW of electricity to Pakistan’s national grid,thus reducing the supply/demand gap.

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OFID launches inaugural Member Country Information Program

Twenty representatives from eight Member Countriestook part in OFID’s first Member Country Informa-tion Program (MCIP) in late October. In an intensive three-days of presentations, they acquired full insight into the internal and external workings of OFID. The objective? To raise OFID’s visibility in, and pro-mote closer cooperation with, Member Countries.

hrough its involvement for almost fourdecades in development projects in more

than 130 countries, OFID has earned recognitionworldwide. But this fact has not curbed OFID’s ef-forts to keep its main stakeholders—most notablythe governments of its Member Countries—abreast of its activities.

The annual MCIP was conceived as part ofefforts to build a greater understanding of OFIDwithin this key group. The objective is to briefparticipants on the institution’s genesis and evo-lution, its mission and vision, its achievementsand aspirations, as well as its position in the in-ternational development arena.

The inaugural MCIP took place at OFIDheadquarters in Vienna from October 21-24,2013. The 20 participants came from eight ofOFID’s twelve Member Countries: Algeria, In-donesia, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, United Arab Emi-rates, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.

For the first three days, participants engagedin presentation sessions from the various depart-ments and units within OFID. On the fourth day,the group visited the OPEC Secretariat—which isalso located in Vienna’s First District— for a brief-ing on OPEC’s activities.

‘Standing’ and ‘voice’In his opening speech, OFID Director-General,Suleiman J Al-Herbish, emphasized the impor-tance to all international organizations of ‘stand-ing’ and ‘voice.’

It was only with ‘standing’ and ‘voice,’ hesaid, that OFID had been able to engage and makeits presence felt in the international developmentdialogue and the various initiatives resultingfrom it.

This voice had also helped to transformOFID “from a lending agency into a fully-fledgeddevelopment institution with its own sought-after knowledge and expertise.” The MCIP meet-ing was the right place to share OFID’s ‘stance’and ‘voice.’

Said Al-Herbish: “Through the MCIP, wewant you to understand what OFID’s work meansfor the millions of people whose lives are better asa result of it.”

The series of presentations that followed of-fered an opportunity to exchange informationwith the participants on OFID’s mandate andwork in the field of international development.

With more than 15 presentations, the tightagenda encompassed almost all units and depart-


NEWSROUND

by Arya Gunawan Usis

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ments in OFID. It kicked-off with a presentationfrom the Department of Information, which in-cluded, among other things, a brief history ofOFID.

OFID inside and outThe Corporate Planning and Economic ServicesUnit gave a presentation covering topics such asthe concept of sustainable development andOFID’s Corporate Plan.

Participants learned that the new CorporatePlan (2016–2025) would focus on the three mainfields known as the water-food-energy nexus. By

using an integrated approach to its activities,OFID expected to increase its impact on job cre-ation and poverty alleviation.

The presentations then moved on to the op-erational side of OFID’s work: Public Sector, Pri-vate Sector, Trade Finance and Grants.

The characteristics of each of the four finan-cial mechanisms were explained at length, alongwith a wide variety of sample case studies to illus-trate the mechanisms in action.

Further presentations were delivered by the Financial Operations Department, the RiskManagement Unit, the Legal Department, the ITUnit, the Human Resources Policy and PlanningGroup and the Administration and Personnel Department.

Participants were also treated to an inform-ative talk on two major global development ini-tiatives—the Busan Partnership and theDeauville Partnership—and OFID’s engagementin them.

The final session was a presentation of theprograms and activities run by the Department ofInformation, with special reference to OFID’s in-tegrated communication strategy.

“The MCIP was really a place for us to ac-quire new knowledge and information aboutOFID, which is very useful for our duties,” saidone participant.

A questionnaire completed by the delegatesconfirmed the positive response. All stronglyagreed that they would serve as advocates forOFID in their respective organizations and coun-tries.

They also strongly agreed that they envis-aged stronger interaction between OFID and theirrespective organizations in the future, as a resultof the MCIP meeting.

In his closing remarks, Mr Al-Herbishthanked the participants for their keen engage-ment in the sessions. Their positive reaction, hesaid, had encouraged him to consider expandingthe program in future years to include otherstakeholders, such as OFID Scholars and OFID-sponsored delegates to the annual One YoungWorld Summit.

Considering the highly participatory natureof the event, the Director-General also proposedchanging the name to Member Country Interac-tion Program. �

To serve as OFID’s advocatesAll presentations were followed by lively discus-sion. The participants also shared a number ofvaluable inputs. Mr Emmanuel N Agbegir, Direc-tor of Public Communication of the NigerianMinistry of Information, for instance, made a proposal that an orientation workshop aboutOFID be organized for journalists in Nigeria.

All participants agreed to finding the meet-ing very useful. Many had previously been unaware of OFID’s record of achievement andcontribution to development and poverty eradi-cation.


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MCIP participants received in-depth briefings from all departments and units of OFID.

Despite an abundance of both traditional and renewable energy resources, the Arab region—at least in parts—is no stranger to energy poverty. OFID provided its expertise on the subject at the October 2013 annual conference of the Arab Forum for Environment and Development.

eveloping countries—especially the poor-est among them— must not be deprived of

access to conventional energy resources duringthe long transition period before renewables canlead the energy market.

This was the main message delivered byOFID Director-General, Suleiman J Al-Herbish, atthe Sixth Conference of the Arab Forum for Envi-ronment and Development (AFED), in Sharjah,United Arab Emirates, at the end of October.

Mr Al-Herbish was a keynote speaker at theannual gathering, which was attended by some600 delegates from 52 countries, representinggovernments, corporations, international and re-gional organizations, academic and research in-stitutions, NGOs and the media.

OFID is a founding member of AFED, aBeirut based Arab think-tank set up in 2006 topromote prudent environmental policies andprograms across the Arab region.

The chief purpose of the October conferencewas to review and launch AFED’s 2013 report(Arab Environment 6) on the theme SustainableEnergy: prospects, challenges, opportunities.

Written by a panel of international experts, thereport highlights the need for more efficientmanagement of the Arab energy sector, with aview to enhancing its contribution to sustainabledevelopment in the region.

OFID lends expertiseIn his address at the Conference’s opening ses-sion, Mr Al-Herbish highlighted OFID’s pioneer-ing role in the eradication of energy poverty andthe commitment made by its Member Countriesthrough the 2012 Ministerial Declaration on En-ergy Poverty.

He also stressed an idea that is central toOFID’s flagship Energy for the Poor Initiative: that en-ergy access solutions in developing countries mustbe both cost-effective and technology-neutral.

OFID’s involvement in the Conference included the panel session Energy for SustainableDevelopment: OFID’s Perspective. Through contri-butions from OFID experts and an external dis-cussant, the session emphasized that any type ofenergy which supports sustainable developmentis indeed sustainable energy.


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by Souhad Khriesat

Energy challenges in the Arab regionOFID takes major role in Arab Forum for Environment and Development

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PHOTO: BRIAN A JACKSON/WWW.SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

The session also provided an opportunity to in-troduce OFID’s activities, outline the frameworkof its operations and showcase several successfulOFID-funded energy projects in a number of Arabcountries.

Another important input from OFID was theframing of a key proposal that was incorporated inthe Conference’s concluding recommendations.

The proposal referred specifically to the needsof people in the Arab region who have no electric-ity and use traditional biomass for cooking.

It stated that policymakers ought to addressenergy poverty among these people through a setof measures that would provide modern energyservices using a sustainable, technology-neutralapproach.

These measures should include, among oth-ers, setting time-bound targets for achieving uni-versal access to modern energy services, anddeveloping appropriate regulatory and legalframeworks conducive to increased public andprivate investment.

Energy subsidiesAmong the other interesting discussions thattook place was one on the pros and cons of energysubsidies in Arab countries.

The opinions in favor of maintaining subsi-dies were primarily on the grounds that subsidiesare “social safety nets.” Those who defendedphasing out subsidies based their arguments onthe need “not to distort market forces.”

OFID’s position is in line with that of the G20 andstates that any reform on subsidies should be un-dertaken on a voluntary basis and according to thespecific national circumstances of individualcountries. The key consideration should be thatthere are no adverse effects on the poor.

An uphill task for someWhile much of the Arab region enjoys rich oiland gas reserves as well as substantial untappedrenewable energy resources, energy poverty con-tinues to hinder sustainable development in thepoorest and least developed Arab countries.

According to recent estimates by the Inter-national Energy Agency Data Bank, approxi-mately 52 million people in the Arab region lackaccess to electricity. This number representsabout one-fifth of the rural population.

The World Health Organization estimatesthat over 48 million people are still using unsus-tainable traditional biomass, resulting in 80,000deaths each year from the inhalation of toxicsmoke.

The majority of this number live in ruralarid regions in Sudan, Yemen, Somalia and Mau-retania. Most of them are small rural farmers ornomadic people, struggling to live in conditionsthat hold little prospect of improvement, partic-ularly considering the limitations on accessingmodern energy services resulting from inade-quate infrastructure, distribution logistics andpurchasing power. �


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At the opening session, Suleiman J Al-Herbish (left) highlighted OFID’spioneering role in energy povertyeradication and commitment made by its Member Countries through the 2012 Ministerial Declaration onEnergy Poverty.

he involvement of all actors, includ-ing the private sector and civil soci-

ety, is essential to development effectiveness,as is the willingness of providers of assis-tance to accept that ownership of the devel-opment process belongs to the countryconcerned.

These points were the main highlightsof the one-day joint OFID/DFID workshop,‘Taking Forward the Global PartnershipPrinciples,’ hosted at OFID’s Vienna head-quarters on October 1.

The workshop was attended by about60 participants representing a number of countries and development agencies, including EU member states, the Arab Coordination Group (ACG), foundations,multilateral organizations and regional organizations.

The main objectives of the workshopwere to share lessons learned on implemen-tation of the Busan Principles on Develop-ment Effectiveness (see box) and to get acommon understanding of the Global Part-nership Monitoring Framework and its in-dicators.

The workshop also sought to reviewinitial preparations for next year’s ministe-

rial meeting in Mexico and provide inputsto the draft agenda, which is currentlybeing finalized by the secretariat of theGlobal Partnership.

This workshop was also a platform forArab development institutions that aremembers of the ACG to share their viewsand experiences on development effective-ness. A day earlier, they held their ownpreparatory meeting to discuss variousideas and proposals for presentation at theworkshop.

Paradigm shiftsIn his opening remarks to the workshop,OFID Director-General, Mr Suleiman J Al-Herbish, affirmed the need for par-ticipants to better understand their respon-sibilities and roles as providers of develop-ment assistance.

“Development processes must bewanted, and properly owned, by our Part-ner Countries,” he said.

He noted that the last few decades hadseen deep transformations in the develop-ment arena. Emerging countries had con-solidated earlier gains and were now

recognized as global economic power-houses. The growing stature of these coun-tries in the global economy had broughtabout changes in the direction of trade, in-vestment and cooperation.

Meanwhile, low- and middle-incomecountries had opted for new developmentmodels and better governance, which con-nected public and private ventures, strength-ened the management of public finance andanchored dialogue with civil society.

In the process, official developmentassistance (ODA) had become dwarfed byother development flows. As a result, its im-pact on development had become mar-ginal, except in very poor countries. “Wehave to acknowledge these paradigmshifts,” Al-Herbish emphasized.

The Director-General also touchedupon the role that could be played by theACG, which is fully committed to theBusan Principles.

He noted that since its inception, theACG and its members, some of which hadbeen providing development assistance forover fifty years, had based their activities onsolidarity among developing countries andSouth-South cooperation.


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The importance of inclusivity for development effectiveness

In October, a one-day workshop co-organized by OFID and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) served as a platform

for providers of development assistance to discuss the four principles of theBusan Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation ahead of the first high-level meeting of the Partnership in Mexico next April.

By Arya Gunawan Usis

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“As a Group, the ACG has consistently up-held the principles of country ownershipand of Partner Countries being in the driv-ing seat,” he added.

In her opening remarks, Dr MehtabCurrey, Development Counselor of DFID,expressed the UK’s ambition for the GlobalPartnership to make a significant contribu-tion to delivery of the post-2015 sustainabledevelopment objectives.

Dr Currey argued that the Global Part-nership could provide on-the-ground expe-rience of the practical challenges thatdeveloping countries face and could agreehow to tackle those issues. It could alsomake links with other bodies with comple-mentary roles.

“For example, we have recently agreedcollaborative work with the UN Develop-ment Cooperation Forum to share analysisand tackle complementary issues in our re-spective meetings,” she disclosed.

New actorsThe importance of taking on board newactors in the development process wasvoiced by some participants, including the

Mexican Ambassador to Austria, HE LuisAlfonso de Alba Gongora. He also agreedwith the notion that the world hadchanged on various fronts and that therewere new roles to be played by a numberof new actors.

“In this regard, we need to develop anew agenda for our meeting in Mexico, toalso include these new actors, includingcivil society and the private sector,” he said.

Ambassador de Alba also stressed theimportance of the role of middle-incomecountries, including Mexico.

“The condition of Mexico today as arecipient of development aid but also atthe same time as a provider of assistancein the development process, has posi-tioned the country as a bridge that couldfacilitate and mediate the developedcountries on the one hand and develop-ing countries on the other, in achievingdevelopment effectiveness,” he added.

In his presentation, Mr Fuad Albas-sam, OFID Assistant Director-General forPublic Sector Operations, and representa-tive of the ACG at the meeting, touchedupon the Group’s key principles in achiev-ing development effectiveness.

He noted that these were broadly in linewith the principles of the Global Partner-ship, but with additional emphasis on theimportance of promoting South-South co-operation and ensuring the sovereignty ofthe State receiving assistance.

With regard to sovereignty, Albassamoutlined the ACG’s view that developmentassistance should be based on the demandsof the State and should be non-conditional.In addition, the State had the right to de-fine development policy and priorities of itsown and was free to determine the processof procurement.

The meeting agreed that developmenteffectiveness would only be realized if thecountry receiving aid was the true owner ofthe development process. This view wasfurther affirmed by Mr Said Aissi, Advisorto the Director-General, OFID.

“Development process must be ownedby the State. And it has to be a true owner-ship, not just a decree ownership,” he said.He added that the participation of variousactors was something absolute in thisprocess, because development was notowned solely by the government. �


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OFID Director-General Suleiman J Al-Herbish (center), flanked by Fuad Albassam (left), OFID Assistant Director-General for Public Sector Operations, and Dr Mehtab Currey, Development Counselor of DIFD, delivered the workshop’s opening remarks.

Monitoring of the Busan Principles� Another issue discussed in the workshopwas the disappointingly low participationby beneficiary countries in the monitoringprocess set up to gauge progress in the ap-plication of the Busan Principles.

By end-September, 2013, only 49countries had signed up to the process,compared to the original 80 countries thathad expressed their intention to participatewhen the Busan Principles were endorsedin 2011.

In a presentation on the monitoringprocess, Ms Yuko Suzuki from the UnitedNations Development Program, put for-ward several reasons for the low number ofconfirmed countries. One factor, she said,

was the voluntary nature of the participa-tion. Another was that some countries pre-ferred to test their reporting system atcountry level first.

Representing Finland—which hasprovided funding of US$500,000 to theGlobal Partnership secretariat—Mr TimoOlkkonen said that most countries found itdifficult to take part in the monitoringprocess as they did not have sufficientknowledge and resources to complete thenecessary reporting data.

He suggested that this issue should beaddressed properly, as a lack of resourcesshould not be a barrier for the monitoringprocess.

Ms Currey and Ms Hannah Ryder, alsoof DFID, welcomed the outcome of theone-day workshop. In their presentations,

as well as in an interview with the Quarterlyafter the meeting, both claimed to have re-ceived a variety of valuable inputs for sub-mission to the leadership of the GlobalPartnership.

The Partnership is led by three highprofile co-chairs: Armida Alisjahbana, Min-ister for National Development Planning,Indonesia; Justine Greening, Secretary ofState for International Development, UK;and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Minister of Fi-nance, Nigeria.

The various ideas and recommenda-tions to come out of the workshop will helpto enrich the Agenda of next year’s Mexicomeeting. They will also increase the oppor-tunity of the Global Partnership to play arole in, and contribute to, the post-2015 de-velopment agenda. �


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The Busan Global Par tnership for Effective Development Cooperation has evolved froma dialogue started in Monterey, Mexico, 2002,at a conference on Financing for Development,convened by the Organization for EconomicCooperation and Development. This gatheringbroadened the focus of discussions for the f irsttime to include the quality of aid in addition tothe quantity.

Three subsequent high-level forums on aid effectiveness took place in Rome (2003), inParis (2005) and in Accra (2008). The fourthHigh Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness was organized in Busan, Republic of Korea, Novem-ber 29–December 1, 2011.

The outcome document of that meeting—theBusan Partnership agreement—sets out fourprinciples that offer a foundation for effectivecooperation in support of international devel-opment. The four principles cover :

• ownership by developing countries

• a focus on results

• inclusive development partnerships

• transparency and accountability to one another

The Busan Partnership does not take the formof a binding agreement or international treaty.Rather, it is a statement of consensus sup-ported by a wide range of governments and

organizations. It offers a framework for contin-ued dialogue in support of efforts to enhancethe effectiveness of development cooperation.

The Partnership marks a new chapter in thehistory of international cooperation, shiftingthe focus from aid effectiveness to the broaderconcept of development effectiveness.

The next high-level meeting, which will be heldin Mexico in April 2014, will ensure that everyBusan Partnership stakeholder is held account-able for its commitments to withhold and im-plement the four principles.

The Busan Partnership in brief

Active participants at the workshop included HE Luis Alfonso de Alba Gongora (left), Mexican Ambassador to Austria; Ms Hannah Ryder (center), DFID; and Ms Yuko Suzuki (right), United Nations Development Program.

mall and medium enterprises are tobe the main beneficiaries of OFID’s

first development operation in Mongolia,a country on the threshold of a majortransformation driven by the exploitationof its vast mineral resources.

The US$20m loan—to Mongolia’slargest bank—will be used for on-lendingto corporates and SMEs in support of theirtrade financing requirements.

Said Khan Bank’s CEO Norihiko Kato:“We are very pleased to establish this rela-tionship with OFID. I believe this new part-nership will significantly support KhanBank’s further growth. The bank will usethe funds from OFID to provide our corecustomers, SMEs, with competitive trade fi-nancing.”

OFID Director-General, Suleiman J Al-Herbish, also welcomed the new al-liance. “This is a fine opportunity to con-tribute to sustainable development and

poverty alleviation in Mongolia. We lookforward to exploring possibilities for fur-ther cooperation in the future,” he stated.

Riches amid desolationSandwiched between the massive land-masses of Russia and China, Mongolia isthe second-largest landlocked country inthe world after Kazakhstan. With just 2.8million people, it is also one of the mostsparsely populated.

Its unforgiving landscape of moun-tain ranges, steppes and the Gobi desertmake for difficult living conditions. Around30 percent of the population are nomadicherders, while about one-fifth live belowthe international poverty line of US$1.25per day.

Despite these challenges, the countryhas made remarkable progress since itstransition to a democratic state over 20years ago. In 2011, economic growth

reached 17.3 percent and is expected to stayin double-digits for the next five years.

Much of this success is down to theabundance of oil reserves as well as depositsof ores such as copper and gold. The lattertwo have come to dominate Mongolia’s ex-port revenues, with mining doubling itsshare of GDP to 20 percent over the pastdecade.

Increased prosperity has led to sub-stantial progress in poverty reduction. Be-tween 2010 and 2011 alone, poverty levelsdecreased by almost 10 percentage pointsfrom 39.2 percent to 29.8 percent.

Broadening the economic baseWhile these signs are encouraging, theMongolian Government, with the help ofinternational financial institutions, is seek-ing to diversify its economy away from ex-cessive reliance on its mineral wealth andcreate sustainable economic growth. �


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by Audrey Haylins

OFID and Mongolia: New partnersWith the provision of a US$20m line of credit to Mongolia’s Khan Bank,

OFID is continuing efforts to broaden partnerships with its Eurasian neighbors.

PHOTO: PRESSMASTER/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

� One key element of this process is sup-port to SMEs in sectors other than mining.Those with strong growth potential includeagribusiness, services and retail trade,among others.

As Mongolia’s biggest bank and theone with the largest branch network, KhanBank is well positioned to play an impor-tant role in this diversification.

With around 1.8 million customers, itprovides services to 80 percent of all house-holds. It is currently the largest lender inthe country and has a substantial SMEclient base.

Since setting up its trade financing activi-ties in 2007, the bank’s portfolio has grownconsiderably year-on-year. In addition tosupport to the mining sector, the bank hassupported the import of agri-machinery,vehicles, spare parts and other strategicgoods, as well as the export of commoditiessuch as iron ore and coal.

OFID’s three-year US$20m line ofcredit will help the bank meet the growingdemand for trade financing among its SMEclients. The short-term tenor of the on-lending will allow the funds to revolve sev-eral times, multiplying the impact of thefacility.

The credit line is part of a syndicatedfacility arranged by the International Fi-nance Corporation (IFC) and the result ofstrengthened cooperation between OFIDand IFC following the conclusion of a mas-ter cooperation agreement in 2010.

“The OFID facility will be very benefi-cial for Mongolian SMEs to expand theirbusiness in the rapidly developing Mongo-lian economy,” CEO Norihiko Kato told theQuarterly.

By boosting the activities of small andmedium entrepreneurs, the facility is alsoexpected to help generate new employ-ment opportunities and thereby help tofurther reduce poverty.

Help in hard timesAlthough the line of credit to Khan Bank isOFID’s first proper development operationin Mongolia, it is not the institution’s firstinvolvement with the country. In 2001,and again in 2010, OFID extended emer-gency assistance to Mongolia following the extreme winter conditions known as“dzuds.”

Severe dzuds hit Mongolia with pun-ishing regularity, killing millions of live-stock and robbing hundreds of thousandsof herders of their livelihoods.

In 2001, some 20 percent of the coun-try’s livestock perished in harsh blizzardsthat caused damage estimated at US$84m.Similar conditions struck in 2010 with cat-astrophic consequences for large numbersof herding communities.

On both occasions, OFID joined theinternational relief effort that was mobi-lized to provide food, shelter and health-care to the affected families, as well as tohelp build national capacity to develop pre-paredness and response plans for future dis-asters. �


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The OFID facility toKhan Bank will help support the trade financing needs of SMEclients, including those in the agriculture sector.

Norihiko Kato, CEO, Khan Bank

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Muzaffarabad district, populatedby around 1.5 million people,thereby improving the delivery of essential services and encourag-ing the development of local industries.

OCTOBER 11

Public Sector loan agreements signedSenegal. US$10m. Joal-Djiffer Road RehabilitationProject. To upgrade the 42kmroad, which passes through keyagricultural areas, and thus im-prove the living conditions ofaround 2.1 million people.

Grenada. US$10m. St Patrick’s Roads Rehabilitationand Upgrading Project. To improveroads and related infrastructure inthe parish of St. Patrick, populatedby over 11,500 people.

Mozambique. US$10m. Niassa Rural Electrification Proj-ect. To extend the national grid torural areas to provide the predomi-nantly rural population of NiassaProvince with access to electricity.

NOVEMBER 12

Public Sector loan agreement signedMalawi. US$6m. The Liwonde-Naminga Road Project. For up-grading works to enable theyear-round transportation of peo-ple and goods and help promotetrade opportunities.

NOVEMBER 12

Emergency Relief Grant approvedInternational Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. US$400,000. To procure urgently-needed reliefitems to assist people in the Philip-pines affected by Typhoon Haiyan.

DECEMBER 11

145th Session of the Governing BoardPublic Sector loans approvedBosnia and Herzegovina. Two loans of US$48m and €24m(approx. US$33m), totalingaround US$81m. Corridor Vc Mo-torway: Subsection Klopce-Donja


October-December 2013

SEPTEMBER 29

Public Sector loan agreement signedEgypt. US$70m. The South Hal-wan Power Plant Project. For ex-panding the plant and improvingthe delivery of reliable electricityfor agricultural, industrial andhousehold use.

SEPTEMBER 30

Arab Coordination GroupMeetingOFID hosted a meeting of theHeads of Operations of the ArabCoordination Group to discussinter alia the Group’s strategy regarding the Global Partnershipfor Effective Development, forwhich OFID is the lead agency.

OCTOBER 1

OFID/DFID WorkshopA workshop entitled “Taking For-ward the Global Partnership Prin-ciples” and co-organized by OFIDand the UK Department for Inter-national Development (DFID), was held at OFID Headquarters.See story page 28.

OCTOBER 4

OFID joins IIAOFID became a member of the In-stitute of Internal Auditors (IIA),an international association ofprofessionals with a global com-munity of more than 180,000practitioners in 190 countriesworldwide.

OCTOBER 10

Public Sector loan agreement signedPakistan. US$50m. NeelumJhelum Hydropower Plant Project.To support the construction of a969 MW power plant in the

Gracanica. Construction of a 6.3 km motorway to facilitate localand regional trade, directly bene-fiting some 143,000 people.

Côte d’Ivoire. US$6.64m. Upgrade and Expansion of Abid-jan International Airport FreightTerminal. Rehabilitation and ex-pansion of the freight terminal:improving service quality, safetyand security and creating employ-ment opportunities.

Djibouti. US$7m. Tadjoura Port. Construction of anew port in Tadjoura, benefitingsome 200,000 people in one of the country’s poorest regions.

The Gambia. US$5m. Basic andSecondary Education Schools.Construction of three libraries, numerous laboratories and sanita-tion facilities, as well as the con-struction, rehabilitation andfurnishing of some 220 classrooms.

Honduras. US$14.5m. Competitiveness and SustainableDevelopment in the South-Western Border Region (“PRO-LENCA”). To improve income, employment opportunities, foodsecurity and general living condi-tions for over 45,000 poor ruralfamilies with a focus on social inclusion, gender and youth development.

Mr Al-Herbish (left) and Dr Franz Fischler, President of the EuropeanForum Alpbach, met on October 3 to discuss the possibilities of future cooperation.

OFID DIARY


streams, directly benefiting some13,000 households.

Rwanda. US$12m. Huye-Kitabi Road Rehabilitation.To rehabilitate and upgrade a 53km road linking the capital, Kigali,to the West and South of the coun-try. Nearly two million people willbenefit from the improved roadsafety, reduced transportationcosts and substantial time savings.

Senegal. US$10m. Community Roads. To rehabilitate875 km and maintain 5,000 km ofrural roads. The project will im-prove the accessibility of some 187remote rural communities, provid-ing jobs and training to approxi-mately 3,700 rural dwellers.

Seychelles. US$10m. Sewerage Infrastructure. Construc-tion of a new sewerage treatmentplant; construction and rehabilita-tion of six pumping stations; in-stallation of sewerage pipelines;and the rehabilitation of existingnetworks, in three of the mostpopulated towns on Mahe, Seychelles’ largest island andhome to some 14,000 people.

Tanzania. US$16.35m. Third Poverty Reduction. To support rural households in obtaining access to enhancedsocio-economic services and income generation activities. Theproject will help reduce poverty for some 2.1 million people.

Yemen. US$25m. Social Fund for Development(Phase IV). To enhance the poten-tial of the poor and vulnerable togenerate income through in-creased access to economic infra-structure, social services andcredit.

Grants approvedWorld Health Organization.US$600,000. To improve access tomedical equipment for cancer carein six countries in Africa and Asiathat have a high cancer burdenand low availability of medicalequipment and services .

Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor. US$400,000. To increase access to improvedwater services for over 56,000 low-income inhabitants of thetowns of Mukuru Sinai and Korogocho in Kenya.

International AIDS Society (IAS).US$350,000. To finance the attendance of young scientistsfrom developing countries at the20th International AIDS Confer-ence. A portion of the grant willalso be used for a joint OFID/IASworkshop at OFID Headquarters,which will gather experts fromOFID Member Countries and oth-ers to discuss “HIV in ConservativeMajority Settings”.

Palestinian Students inLebanon. US$500,000. This spe-cial OFID scholarship scheme will

enable 70 high-achieving studentsfrom among Palestinian refugeesin Lebanon to enroll in Lebaneseuniversities over the course of fouracademic years. The grant will bechanneled through the MahmoudAbbas Foundation.

United Nations DevelopmentProgram/Program of Assistanceto the Palestinian People.US$800,000. To renovate and expand maternal healthcare facilities in the Gaza Strip.

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit(GIZ). US$700,000. To improveenergy efficiency through the development of a solar waterheaters market in Yemen, includ-ing manufacturing and assemblyto stimulate economic develop-ment.

Shell Foundation. US$1m. To improve access to efficientcooking stoves in six countries insub-Saharan Africa and sevencountries in Latin America.

DECEMBER 12

Arab Development Portal(ADP) MeetingOFID hosted World Bank andUNDP representatives to reviewand discuss latest developments inthe first phase of the ADP.

India. US$50m. India Sustainable Renewable Energy Development Program. To support the Government ofIndia in developing cornerstoneprojects as well as institutional reforms in the renewable energysector. The creation of renewableenergy generation infrastructurewill positively impact around55,000 households.

Kenya. US$5m. Rongai Hospital. To construct andequip a new hospital and residen-tial staff building in Rongai City.The project will improve the qual-ity and accessibility of affordablehealthcare services for some150,000 people.

Niger. US$6m. Emergency Food Security andRural Development Program. Toimprove food security in Niger,with particular focus on theMaradi, Tahoua and Tillaberi re-gions, home to about 50 percent ofthe total population, includingpoor farming and herding familieswho have been highly exposed torecurrent food and livestock crises.

Panama. US$52m. Panama Bay and City Sanitation(Phase II). To improve sanitationconditions in the Panama Bay andCity area and increase access tosanitation services in urban settle-ments discharging into the RioAbajo, Matasnillo and Curundu

(Left) HE Reza Najafi, new Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republicof Iran to the UN and other International Organizations in Vienna, paid a courtesy visit to theDirector-General on October 2. HE Salahaldin Abdel-Shafi (center), new Ambassador of Pales-tine to Austria, called on Mr Al-Herbish on October 8 to talk about strengthening cooperation.(Right) Mr Al-Herbish greeting Mr Peter Ford, Representative of the UNRWA Commissioner-General, who was part of a delegation that visited on October 8 to review progress of OFID-supported operations and discuss strengthening ties.


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Meetings attended by OFID

SEPTEMBER 30OFID HEADQUARTERS, VIENNA, AUSTRIAArab Coordination GroupMeeting

OCTOBER 2-6JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICAOne Young World Summit2013

OCTOBER 10-13WASHINGTON DC, USAWorld Bank Annual Meetings

OCTOBER 14-17NAIROBI, KENYA3rd International Water Associ-ation Congress and Exhibition

OCTOBER 16-19 BRUSSELS, BELGIUMCrans Montana Forum’s Ex-traordinary Session & Interna-tional Summit onTransnational Crime

OCTOBER 27-28KISH ISLAND, IRANNational Development Fund ofIran’s International Conference

OCTOBER 27-31WINDHOEK, NAMIBIAInternational Water Association Conference

OCTOBER 28-29 SHARJAH, UAEAnnual Conference of the Arab Forum for Environmentand Development

OCTOBER 30DUBAI, UAEGCC Forum on AvoidableBlindness

NOVEMBER 6-7DUBAI, UAEArab Bank for Economic Development in Africa’s Forum of Arab and AfricanBusiness Women

NOVEMBER 11-12 KUWAIT CITY, KUWAITArab/Africa Economic Forum

NOVEMBER 13-15 ORLANDO, USAAmerican Institute of Certified Public AccountantsControllers Conference

NOVEMBER 14-15 CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICAPowering Africa Conference

NOVEMBER 17-19MIAMI, USAFederation of Latin AmericaBanks Annual Assembly

NOVEMBER 18-20KUWAIT CITY, KUWAIT3rd Afro-Arab Summit

NOVEMBER 18-20CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICAWorld Bank Treasury’s GlobalSymposium on Pension andSovereign Fund Investments

NOVEMBER 18-21WASHINGTON DC, USAWorld Bank Legal Vice-

Presidency’s Law, Justice and Development Week

NOVEMBER 22-24MANAMA, BAHRAIN8th Meeting of the Arab Energy Club

NOVEMBER 26-27NEW YORK, USAMeeting of the Sustainable Energy for All Advisory Board

NOVEMBER 28-29PUNTA CANA, DOMINICAN REPUBLICLatin American Energy Organization’s 43rd Ministerial Meeting

DECEMBER 3-4VIENNA, AUSTRIAAnnual Meeting of the Center for Global Dialogue and Cooperation

DECEMBER 9VIENNA, AUSTRIA9th Meeting of the Vienna Energy Club

www.ofid.org

On November 8, Martin Ledolter, new Managing Director of the Austrian Development Agency, paid a courtesy visit to Mr Al-Herbish.

HE Abel A Ayoko, recently-appointedNigerian Ambassador to Austria, visited Mr Al-Herbish on December 8.

In its last meeting of 2013 on December 11, OFID’s Governing Board committed more than US$403m in new approvals to foster development in over 35 Partner Countries. The lion’s share of this total—some US$300m—went to support public sector projects in the fields of energy, education, transportation, health, agriculture and water & sanitation. Five transactions amounting to US$62m, and including a first trade operation in Papua New Guinea, were approved under the Trade Finance Facility. Private Sector commitments totaled US$35m and will support mainly the activities of micro-, small- and medium-size enterprises. Also among the new approvals were seven grants worth around US$4.4m for a broad range of initiatives. Further details of all approvals can be found in the Diary.

145th Session of the Governing Board

Abdul Wahab A Al-Bader, Kuwaiti Governor to OFIDand Chairman of the Governing Board

Talal Al-Enazi, Counsellor, Embassy of the State of Qatar, Austria

Fawzi Yousef Al-Hunaif,Alternate Governor of Kuwait


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From left: Said Aissi, Advisor to the Director-General; Fuad Albassam, Assistant Director-General, Public Sector Operations;Mr Suleiman J Al-Herbish, Director-General; Abdul Wahab A Al-Bader, Kuwaiti Governor to OFID and Chairman of theGoverning Board; Saeid Niazi, Assistant Director-General, Financial Operations; and Tareq Alnassar, Acting Head, Private Sector Operations.

HE Dr Anny Ratnawati, Governor of Indonesia Ahmed M Al-Ghannam, Governor of Saudi Arabia


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LOAN SIGNATURE

October 12Mozambique Finance Minister

HE Manuel Chang signed a US$10m loan agreement for the Niassa Rural

Electrification Project, which will enable about 35,000 subscribers and

104,000 people living in Niassa province to be connected to modern

electricity services.

October 12HE Dr Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada,with Mr Al-Herbish aftersigning a US$10m loan agreement for the St Patrick’sRoads Rehabilitation and Upgrading Project that willbenefit over 11,500 peoplethrough the improvement of roads and related infrastructure.


OFID DIARY

October 12HE Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Minister of Finance, Pakistan, shakeshands with Mr Al-Herbish, following signature of a US$50mloan for the Neelum Jhelum Hydropower Plant Project, which willconstruct a 969 MW power plant in the Muzaffarabad district,populated by around 1.5 million people.

November 12HE Dr Cornelius Mwalwanda,Deputy Minister of Finance,Malawi, and Mr Al-Herbish, exchange remarks followingsignature of a US$6m loanagreement for the Liwonde-Naminga Road Project, whichwill enable year-round trans-portation and help promotetrade opportunities for nearlytwo million people.

The full list of loan and grant signatures can be found on pages 33-35.

October 12HE Amadou Ba, Minister of Economyand Finance, Senegal, secured aUS$10m loan for the Joal-Djiffer RoadRehabilitation Project that will improve a 42 km road that passes through keyagricultural areas, thus helping boostincomes and food security for around2.1 million individuals.

Sustainable intensification: Producingmore food with fewer inputsWith the world population hurtling towards a projected nine billion by 2050,experts continue to search for solutions to the growing food security crisis. The problem is, it’s not just a question of producing more—it’s a matter of doing so sustainably.

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SPOTLIGHT

by Jennifer Adams

PHOTO: HORIYAN/WWW.SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

lobal food production systems are comingunder mounting pressure. And not just

from population growth. As people in developingregions get wealthier and consume more meatand dairy products, extra crops are needed for an-imal feed. In addition, some key crops are increas-ingly being used for biofuels.

Intensified agriculture has long been re-garded as the way forward. However, this type ofproduction requires vast amounts of land and haspotentially extreme environmental impacts.Agriculturists and policy-makers thus continue tograpple with the conundrum of how to producemore food without exhausting the planet’s lim-ited resources.

One solution to enter the debate recently issustainable intensification, an innovative approachthat addresses the need for both increased out-puts and environmental protection.

Short-term v. long-term solutionsIn its traditional form, intensified agriculturerefers to a method of land cultivation in which avery high level of inputs, such as fertilizers, pesti-cides and, of course, labor, result in maximumoutputs.

Although intensification has the ability tosolve the problem of hunger in the short term, itsreliance on high volumes of land, water andchemical usage means that increased yields are al-most certainly not sustainable.

In fact, given current rates of climatechange, agricultural production is predicted todecrease by 2050; a trend that could be exacer-bated if traditional intensification practices con-tinue.

Dr Mahmoud Solh, Director-General of theInternational Center for Agricultural Research inthe Dry Areas, cautions against such methods.

“The target for agricultural developmentshould be the production of more food using lessland and less water, especially as the competitionfor these resources is increasing,” he argues.

Dr Solh points out that as intensification isonly possible where land and water exist inabundance, this type of cultivation is out ofreach for many of the world’s most vulnerableregions.

“In resource-stressed communities wherewater availability is low and unpredictable, thepremise of intensified agriculture being the bestsolution for ending hunger absolutely does nothold and, actually, excludes these vulnerablecommunities that may have extreme need,” heinsists.

Certainly, when it comes to Africa, land maynot be as abundant as it seems, despite claims tothe contrary.

For example, a 2013 World Bank report on Africanagriculture asserts that Africa has more than halfof the world’s fertile yet unused land.

Another oft-cited statistic from the Interna-tional Food Policy Research Institute shows that90 percent of land available for cultivation can befound in Latin American and Africa.

Sir Gordon Conway, Chair of the Montpel-lier Panel, a group of experts on food security andagricultural development, takes a more realisticstance.

“There isn’t land available,” he told theQuarterly. “The land that is available is unusablefor a good reason. The whole of the Congo basin,for instance, could be cut down, but climatechange would be horrendous. The fact is, there’sa scarcity of land and water. However, there maybe land that’s under-utilized, and that’s why sus-tainable intensification is important.”

Getting more from lessLike traditional intensification techniques, thegoal of sustainable intensification is also theachievement of a greater number and quality ofoutputs. Where it differs is in the level of inputsnecessary.

Sustainable techniques are many and di-verse: as simple as crop rotation and Zai systems(see box), based on traditional strategies, to theuse of high-yielding seed varieties and organicfertilizers, which require time-intensive researchand development.

Because sustainable intensification focuseson maximizing the efficiency of existing re-sources, the techniques are as equally appropriatefor smallholder farmers as they are for large-scaleagricultural complexes. �


SPOTLIGHT

The Zai system

Although a number of technologically advanced solutions have shown to be extremely effective in many parts of the world, the study and improvement of traditional methods of farming can also bring high rewards. Such methods canbe especially useful for rural communities that lack access to advanced irrigationand on-grid power solutions.

One such example is the Zai system, which has proved very eff icient at restoringsoil productivity and replenishing vegetation. The system consists of a numberof holes, dug into the f ields during the dry season. The holes are then f illed withleaves and manure, which, in turn, attract termites. The termites create a networkof underground tunnels that connect the holes and allow nutrients to f ilterdeeper into the soil. During the rainy season, rainwater collects in the Zais and,because of the termite tunnels, is able to penetrate deeply into the soil.

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The increase in eff iciency and productivity necessary to meet the chal-lenge of food security cannot be achieved without increased invest-ment in agricultural research for development (R4D).

OFID recognizes that supporting agricultural R4D is one of the bestways to contribute to sustainable development and f ight hunger. Forthis reason, OFID has joined forces with organizations around theworld to renew the focus on agricultural R4D and support researchinitiatives that have the potential to signif icantly increase global agricul-tural productivity.

One of OFID’s partner organizations is CGIAR, a global partnershipthat unites 15 specialized research centers in order to develop knowl-edge, technologies and policies for agricultural development.

Since beginning its partnership with CGIAR, OFID has provided nearlyUS$20m to CGIAR-sponsored research centers for a large number ofinitiatives ranging from enhancing the sustainability of lowland pasturesin Tunisia, to increasing the prediction accuracy of crop yield gaps inMalawi.

Together, OFID and CGIAR are working to ensure that the power ofagricultural R4D initiatives is harnessed to develop the best and mosteff icient strategies to increase agricultural production and put an endto global hunger, once and for all.

� This is good news for smallholder farmers insub-Saharan Africa, who are responsible for themajority of agricultural production in the region.

The key is to ensure that solutions addressnot only the real challenges to agricultural devel-opment – poor soil quality, water scarcity, etc. –but also protect the natural resources that areavailable for future use.

And these techniques are working. On hislast trip to Ethiopia, a country plagued with re-curring drought, food shortages and famine, SirGordon saw how a new boron-based fertilizer wasproducing maize yields comparable to those inthe United States.

The same solution, however, may not neces-sarily be appropriate in all circumstances. The ob-stacles to food production vary around the world,so solutions must be tailored to address specificneeds.

Boosting agricultural researchMeeting these challenges requires long-termcommitment and funding for agricultural devel-opment and research.

“It’s very difficult to increase outputs withoutalso increasing inputs. The global communityshould support not only the agricultural researchthat makes this possible, but also create an en-abling environment for agriculture,” stressed SirGordon.

An enabling environment includes givingfarmers access to markets, government subsidiesto ensure that farmers can afford to buy improvedinputs, and the political will to prioritize agricul-tural development as part of national actionplans.

Dr Solh agrees: “Looking at the puzzle as awhole, rather than fixating on individual pieces,will allow us to contribute to sustainable humanprogress faster, enhance food security and im-prove livelihoods.”

Though there is no one-size-fits-all solutionto ending hunger, an integrated approach thattakes into consideration the long-term sustain-ability of the world’s limited resources as well asthe inequalities that continue to undermineglobal efforts to address food security is, withoutquestion, our best option. Sustainable intensifi-cation may well be the key. �


SPOTLIGHT

OFID’s contribution to agricultural research

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Mandela departsWorld mourns an icon

he international community, throughmuch of December, 2013, bade farewell to

South Africa’s Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela(Madiba) who died December 5, 2013, in Johan-nesburg after a period of ill-health. He was aged 95.

An official obituary broadcast by SouthAfrican President Jacob Zuma told the people ofSouth Africa and the rest of the world thatMadiba was “now resting; he is now at peace.”The iconic African leader had passed on to im-mortality.

Mandela taught patience, equality, democ-racy and respect for all. He was a universal symbolof forgiveness. Zuma said Mandela earned the re-spect of the world. He was unique in a country ofprofound social, racial and ethnic division.

He “taught our people how to heal,” saidZuma. “We know that all of South Africa (and theentire world) join us in our profound sense of lossand our sadness at the death of our belovedfounder.”

South Africa told the world—in the coun-try’s traditional view—that a giant tree had fallen,but the tree was still bringing people togethereven after its fall. South Africans considered Man-dela a unique figure in their history.

Indeed, elsewhere, Mandela was mentionedto be in the same ‘league’ as Mahatma Gandhi,Martin Luther King Junior and Abraham Lincoln.

Mandela, the South Africans say, left an en-during legacy. He had worked all through his lifeto bring unity to an incredibly diverse and dis-united country, creating a “rainbow nation.” His-torians teach that Mandela gave up his anger togovern inclusively.

Rather than bringing the perpetrators of the injustice of apartheid to book, he chose to establish a truth and reconciliation process to the multi-faith, multi-culture and multi-ethnicsociety.

OFID pays tributeOFID Director-General, Mr Suleiman J Al-Her-bish, was one of the first to pay fitting tribute tothe departed icon. In a statement, December 6, hesaid the world had lost one of its greatest sonswith the departure of Mandela.

“Although we knew that this day wouldeventually come, given Mr. Mandela’s increas-ingly frail health in recent years, nothing can di-minish our sense of profound and enduring loss,”said the Director-General.

Writing Mr Jacob Zuma, Al-Herbish ex-pressed his personal and OFID’s deepest sympa-thy to the family of Madiba, the nation of SouthAfrica and the millions of people across the worldgenuinely touched by the exit of the man.

Mr Al-Herbish, in 1998, had the opportunityto visit Robben Island, where Mandela was incar-cerated for 27 years. “There,” he said, “I saw withmy own eyes the difficult conditions Mandela endured without losing hope.”

Al-Herbish said Mandela was not only ananti-apartheid revolutionary, who brought free-dom to his beloved country; he was also a leadingadvocate for human rights and peace.

“He was strongly convinced that humanprogress is only possible within a context of peacebased on forgiveness and reconciliation. Thesebeliefs were—and always will be—a source of in-spiration for the world, including us at OFID aswe continue our mandate in the field of interna-tional development.” �


SPOTLIGHT

by Sam Chukwudi

Nelson Mandela wasconvinced that humanprogress was only possi-ble within a context ofpeace based on forgive-ness and reconciliation.

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� Indeed, at OFID, December 13, and all acrossthe world, the South African national anthem,Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica (God bless Africa), resonatedin memory of Tata Madiba.

Memorial service in JohannesburgThe nations of the world, December 10, assem-bled in Johannesburg to honor Mandela at a Me-morial Service held in the National Stadium. Thenations were “unified by a man and a message.”

It was the largest gathering ever of worldleaders on African soil. Along with millions allover the world, the leaders celebrated a life like noother. More than 90 heads of states and govern-ments were in attendance, with non-friends, insome cases, sitting next to each other.

The event, the stadium and the entire city ofJohannesburg were drenched by rain which stilldid not deter movement and planned activity.Said the South Africans (in reflection of commonAfrican culture): Often, when a good man is beingremembered, the heavens open up and a mighty rainfalls.

Bio-sketchNelson Rolihlahla Mandela (Madiba) was bornJuly 18, 1918, in Mveso on the banks of theMbashe River in the Transkei, South Africa. His fa-ther died when Mandela was only nine years old,


SPOTLIGHT

bringing dramatic change to the son’s life. Later,the family moved to Qunu, a smaller village,north of Mvezo.

Mandela was educated at various colleges:the Wesleyan College, the University College ofFort Hare, the University of London and the Uni-versity of Witwatersrand. He studied law.

He became actively involved in the anti-apartheid movement in his 20s, joining theAfrican National Congress in 1942. Mandela wasimprisoned and held on Robben Island for 27years. He was fighting the Afrikaner whiteapartheid system, which demeaned and discrim-inated against the indigenous Africans. He hadbeen tried for treason and sabotage. On his releasefrom jail, he preached forgiveness and unityrather than revenge.

A unique figureNelson Mandela was seen by many as a uniquefigure in history; one of the few singular leadersof the 20th Century world. He fought againstdomination by white people; he fought againstdomination by black people.

He was South Africa’s first democratically-elected President, 1994–1999. This was a period ofreconstruction and re-building in South Africa,with the country seeking to re-establish friend-ships across Africa, south of the Sahara, and draftmeaningful, non-discriminatory laws. The coun-try worked to bring home many accomplisheddaughters and sons driven out of the country byapartheid.

Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prizein 1993. He shared the Prize with FW de Klerk. Tohelp his people and other poor across Africa,Mandela created the Nelson Mandela Foundationwhich has remained active over the years.

Among the many quotes attributed to Man-dela was one which said ‘I am because you are.’ InMandela’s culture and Ubuntu philosophy, it isoften echoed that ‘I am what I am because of whowe all are’. An important autobiographical sketchof the man is his book, The Long Road to Free-dom, published in 1994 by Little, Brown & Co.

HIV/AIDSIt is to be noted that Mandela also did much tohelp combat AIDS in Africa; an area of endeavourin which OFID has equally been much involved.HIV/AIDS claimed and destroyed lives acrossSouth Africa as the government of the day soughtto ignore and deny the tragedy of the pandemic.The Mandela family lost a son to HIV/AIDS.

Madiba Nelson Mandela was laid to rest Sun-day, December 15, 2013 in his ancestral home-land, Qunu. �

Nelson Mandela, DeputyPresident of the AfricanNational Congress, addressing the SpecialCommittee againstApartheid which con-vened in his honor onJune 22, 1990, at the UN in New York.

Inspirational young leaders spearhead One Young World Summit

As one of the founding supporters of the One Young World annual summit, OFID once again brought young delegates from unrepresented countries

to the 2013 gathering in Johannesburg.

ne Young World 2013 took place in Africafor the first time on October 2–5. Once

again, OFID was a Delegate Partner, joining oth-ers in gathering the brightest young people fromaround the world and empowering them to makepositive change.

This year, over 1,250 delegates from 190countries attended. Sir Richard Branson made hisfirst appearance as a One Young World Coun-selor, and Winnie Mandela addressed the delega-tion during the closing ceremony.

The Summit provides delegates with the op-portunity to debate, formulate and create inno-vative solutions to some of the most pressingissues challenging their societies.

Many delegates describe their experience atthe Summit as “life-changing.” Their ability to in-teract with and listen to some of the most inspira-

tional leaders on the planet provides them with in-sight into the power they hold to change the future.

The opening ceremony took place at Johan-nesburg’s FNB Stadium, where a number of worldleaders addressed the delegates.

The Executive Mayor of Johannesburg,Councillor Parks Tau, and the City of Johannes-burg, gave a warm welcome to the One YoungWorld Summit 2013 and the legacy it may leavefor South Africa and the continent.

Professor Mohammad Yunus, Nobel PrizeLaureate focused on the “call to action,” saying todelegates: “You are lucky to have been born in anage where what was impossible is becoming pos-sible.”

Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of theUnited Nations stated: “It is your leadership thatwe depend upon.” �


by Reem Aljarbou

CONFERENCE WATCH

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Voices of Youth OFID-sponsored delegates reflect


CONFERENCE WATCH

Tabassum Mokhduma, Bangladesh“I was really amazed to see so many youngpeople full of passion for what they aredoing. These people are the true changemakers, and I was really surprised despitetheir young age, how they try to make achange in the best possible way they can.I want to tell all of you hearing me today,

to speak up and raise your voice on violence against women, or anyform of violence it doesn’t really matter, be it inside your home oroutside your home, if you suffer or anyone you know is suffering,please speak up, because it happens that sometimes that one who issuffering does not have the chance to speak up.”

Kingsley Ofosu-Ampong, Ghana“If I am able to make my voice be heard, in one way or another I can help someone,those who are de-privileged and thosewho cannot do anything about their ownsituation. It is the power of voice that reallyinspires me.”

Adrianova Emilia,Nicaragua “I have had the chanceto learn about educa-tion and women’s em-powerment, which hasopened my mind, andmade me ask myselfwhat am I doing andwhat can I do when Ireturn to my country.”


CONFERENCE WATCH

� Reflecting on the shortcomings of his own gen-eration, Sir Bob Geldof, musician and activistwarned the delegates: “You cannot afford to letyour generation fail.”

Since One Young World was launched in2010, OFID has sponsored 84 young delegatesfrom 47 countries. Delegates from developing andMember Countries are given the opportunity toattend the summit through an extensive applica-tion process.

Each year in advance of the Summit, OneYoung World commissions global research basedon the topics and themes Ambassadors haveagreed should be up for discussion. The findingshelp inform content for the plenary sessions andassist in identifying areas of interest for specialsessions and debates.

Main topics debatedThe plenary sessions are the foundations fromwhich all content at the Summit is developed.The 2013 topics were arrived at following a year-long consultation process with Ambassadors andincoming delegates.

The 2013 Summit held plenary sessions onthe following six themes: Education; Global Busi-ness; Human Rights; Leadership and Governance;Sustainable Development; and Youth Unemploy-ment.

Each plenary session featured six speechesgiven by delegates who were personally intro-duced by a Counselor.

The question posed at the plenary on Edu-cation was: How can tomorrow’s skills be taughttoday?

Education systems are at a crossroad and ed-ucators are grappling with how to meet thechanging requirements of today’s employmentlandscape.

In the developing world especially, progressin getting every child into school is at a halt, with57 million children still without access to basiceducation.

During this session, delegates discussed theimportance of technology and alternative school-ing methods which can better prepare young peo-ple for life.

Around 62 percent of One Young World Am-bassadors and delegates are active or have a spe-cial interest in education. In the polls, the OneYoung World community selected education asthe top choice of topics for the 2013 Summit.

The Global Business plenary explored howyoung employees could be the key to better busi-ness.

For this generation, technology has enabledthem to be more informed, making them one �

Howard Woodrow Chidinma Nelson-Williams, Sierra Leone “What captivated me the most about what Kofi Annan said was: ‘Change is not an event, but it is a process and it takes continuous effort,it takes relentlessness, it takes perseverance, hard work, discipline and commitment, knowingwhat we want and focusing on the objective,

and then eventually together we can achieve what we want to achieve.’I am very happy that I am in the midst of so many like-minded young people from all over the world representing various diversities and cultureshere in one place, it gives me and every other person the opportunity to network and share ideas to build on ideas and create platforms and solutions to our problems, and make a change in the world.”

Sumudu Paragoda Vithanage, Sri Lanka“Sri Lanka’s education system is evolving; it’s notlike when we were in school, its more knowledgebased, including more skills and practical sessions.To change the world we should be more ori-ented, work, and develop our skills. Communica-tion skills are now playing a bigger role inleadership; it’s a good powerful method to bring

people together to share their knowledge and our experiences.After coming here, many young people have done the smallest things thathave made such a difference. So it’s not about gathering knowledge and get-ting experience, it is about your willingness that will make a change. Weshould act on what we do without waiting to get experience or recognition,because they are not needed to make a difference.”

PHOTOS: OYW; OFID/REEM ALJARBOU

� of the most influential generation of youngadults that has ever existed.

Because of their power to drive change andmake business more responsible and sustainable,business leaders are understanding the impor-tance of listening to this generation’s needs.

During the Global Business plenary variousdelegates and Ambassadors who work in busi-nesses shared the roles they hold within their organizations and the changes they try to imple-ment despite being young.

The poll for this session showed that 93 per-cent of the One Young World community be-lieved that business should have a purposebeyond profit.

The Human Rights plenary looked at gen-der equality and the challenge of turning rhetoricinto reality.

Disabled people, women and young girls areconsidered some of the top groups of peoplewhose rights are least protected. Women’s rightsare routinely violated on a daily basis whetherfrom discrimination, poverty or violence.

Violence causes more death and disabilityamongst women aged 15 to 44 than war, cancer,malaria and traffic accidents combined. Two-thirds of illiterate adults in this world are women.

The Session examined how to improve therights of marginalized women and girls and ex-plore ways to address the structural causes of gen-der inequality.

A substantial 88 percent of One YoungWorld delegates said that upholding the rights ofwomen and girls was vital to progress in theircountry.

At the plenary on Leadership & Gover-nance, delegates considered the question: Whatis the new democracy?


CONFERENCE WATCH

Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, wasone of several globalstatesmen and leaders to address the delegates at One Young World.

Many delegates at One Young World are person-ally involved in generating better methods to increase government engagement with youngpeople.

Almost two-thirds (63 percent) of the OneYoung World community is active or has a specialinterest in the fields of leadership and government.

The Session examined what current leaderscould do and what new models of democracy andpolitical process were being created.

The Sustainable Development plenary dis-cussed a range of issues, such as food security,clean water access, and energy.

Delegates considered how universal accessto many resources for the world’s poorest can beachieved with a variety of solutions and collabo-ration.

Around 94 percent of One Young World del-egates voted that sustainable developmentshould become a vital part of every child’s educa-tion.

Youth Unemployment was the sixth issuediscussed in plenary. One of this generation’smost critical issues is the lack of opportunitywithin education and employment. The statisticsare startling, with almost a quarter of the planet’syouth neither working nor studying.

This issue was a high priority for the OneYoung World community, when they elected tohave the topic on the Summit agenda for the firsttime. Some 76 percent of the community indi-cated that youth unemployment was insuffi-ciently addressed in their country.

In this Session the delegates looked at howto create their own employment opportunities.They discussed education reform and entrepre-neurialism as best methods of tackling youth un-employment. �

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id you know that 780 million peoplelack access to an improved water

source? Did you know that this causes 4,000child deaths from a water-related illnessevery year? And, did you know that morepeople have a mobile phone than a toilet?

If you think that these facts providedby WHO, UNICEF and the World Bank areastonishing, be prepared to read somethingeven more shocking: of all the water onEarth, only 2.6 percent is freshwater. Andalmost two percent of this freshwater is

trapped in ice caps and glaciers. This leavesless than one percent for human consump-tion, and 70 percent of it is used for irriga-tion purposes. And yes, you are right; welive in an ever thirstier planet.

There is more. Of the 3.5 billion peo-ple living in urban areas around the world,less than half have access to adequate waterand sanitation services. Of the 60 millionpeople migrating to towns and cities world-wide every year, most establish their homesin informal settlements with no sanitation

facilities. The urgent need to seek solutionsfor this crushing reality is obvious.

Pooling expertise to find solutionsThe International Water Association Devel-opment Congress and Exhibition is heldevery two years to address urban watermanagement issues in low and middle in-come countries attracting 1,000 water pro-fessionals. �


CONFERENCE WATCH

In October, OFID’s Damelys Delgado made her first visit to the African continent when she attended the 3rd International Water Congress in Nairobi, Kenya.

Here, she reports on the conference and the impressions it left her with.

IWA Congress: Seeking solutions for water and sanitation services

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� The 2013 gathering took place in Nairobi,Kenya, October 14–17, in association withthe Water Services Providers Association ofKenya.

Held under the slogan ‘CatalyzingUrban Water Transitions,’ the event broughttogether around 1,000 delegates from re-search institutions and universities, govern-ments, NGOs and the private sector as wellas bilateral and international developmentinstitutions from all over the world.

The Congress discussed four sub-themes: optimizing service delivery for uni-versal access; beyond the front-lines ofurban sanitation; optimizing resourcesalong the water, food and energy nexus;and human resources and capacities fortransition.

The Congress focused on finding solu-tions for water and sanitation servicesrather than diagnosing challenges andproblems, which are already well docu-mented. OFID participated as a main spon-sor and exhibitor and sent a delegation toattend the various sessions.

More attention needed from governmentsAt the inaugural session, OFID’s RachidBencherif, Head, Grants Unit, participatedas a panelist jointly with representatives ofthe African Water Association, UNESCO,BORDA, World Bank and Water ResearchCommission.

In his intervention, Bencherif stated thatthere were not enough large-scale publicsector water projects addressing the sanita-tion issue. He revealed that OFID was re-ceiving requests mainly for small-scalesanitation projects implemented by NGOs.

“Those projects are useful and neces-sary but they are not sufficient to tacklethe real problem of sanitation,” he argued,adding “the sanitation sector is persist-ently sidelined in national developmentplans.”

This statement aroused the interest ofmany people visiting OFID’s exhibition

stand, including Dr Judi Wakhungu, Min-ister for Environment, Water and NaturalResources of Kenya. A substantial 68 per-cent of Kenya’s population does not haveaccess to adequate sanitation services.

The OFID booth, which served as avenue to hold side meetings, was designedto show the institution’s commitment tothe water-food-energy nexus. A plasma-screen television played a video aboutOFID’s support to the sector.

Beside the side meetings held at thestand, the OFID delegation also made afield trip to an impoverished community in


CONFERENCE WATCH

The exhibition part of the event offered an opportunity for stakeholders from all sides of the water industry to network and exchange views.

Dr Judi Wakhungu, Minister for Environment,Water and Natural Resources of Kenya.

Glen Daigger, President of the InternationalWater Association.

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Nairobi to see a water and sanitation proj-ect under implementation.

Behind the scenesUpon our arrival in Nairobi, the warmweather and the green landscape remindedme very much my own home city, Caracas.All the people I met were warm and caring.

Through the exhibition at the event, I came to understand the plight of millionsof people who live without sanitation. Ofthe many reports, catalogues and pam-phlets I saw, one grabbed my attention

the most. It was a leaflet showing childrenhow to wash their hands, something thatmost of us take for granted. I learnt thathand washing in schools reduces the inci-dence of diarrhea by an average 30 per-cent.

Amid the overwhelming figures, thereis one not as big as some but shockingenough nonetheless: 1,600 unsheltered toi-lets in the slums of Cape Town, SouthAfrica, which expose users to the publicgaze—an experience far removed from thethe ‘loo with a view’ promoted by some fivestar hotels.

In 2011, during the launch of theUnited Nations program ‘Sustainable sani-tation: The Five-Year-Drive to 2015,’ Secre-tary-General Ban Ki-moon said: “Sanitationis a sensitive issue. It is an unpopular sub-ject. Perhaps that is why the sanitation cri-sis has not been met with the kind ofresponse we need…but that must change.”He added: “It is time to put sanitation andaccess to proper toilets at the center of ourdevelopment discussions.”

Although there are many needs thatstill remain to be met, the internationalcommunity is making decisions to turn the crisis around, as was clear at the IWADevelopment Congress and Exhibition.Through support to more than 1,000 proj-ects in the water-food-energy nexus, OFIDis doing its share to fund solutions, wher-ever possible. �


CONFERENCE WATCH

OFID recognizes the importance of securing access to water and sanita-tion. To date, OFID has channeled atotal of US$872m in concessional f i-nancing for almost 160 projects andprograms in the water and sanitationsector. Close to 70 percent of thisassistance has gone to low-incomecountries. In 2013, the InternationalYear of Water Cooperation, someUS$174m was approved for initia-tives to improve access to cleanwater and improved sanitation facili-ties in OFID partner countries.

Water-food-energy nexus

OFID conducts its activities in thewater sector as part of an integratedapproach addressing the water-food-energy nexus. Water is a key factorin promoting food security. At thesame time, water production anddistribution would not be possiblewithout access to energy. Cumula-tively, OFID has dedicated aroundhalf of its public sector lending tomeeting the challenges of the nexus.In 2013, OFID allocated more thanUS$752m to a variety of projectscovering all three pillars of the nexus.

OFID in the water and sanitation sector

Patrick Quarcoo, Group CEO, Radio AfricaGroup, touched on the role of media, communication and information technology in water and sanitation development during the keynote plenary session.

The OFID delegation (from left): Rachid Bencherif, Damelys Delgado, Shirin Hashemzadeh.

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Punta Cana Declaration pledges action on energy access

In late November, the highest body of the Latin American Energy Organization (OLADE) publicly committed to promote sustainability and expand access to energy across the Latin America and Caribbean region.

onvening in Punta Cana, Dominican Re-public, on November 29, 2013, for the 43rd

Regular Meeting of Ministers, OLADE membercountry energy ministers issued a Declaration onSustainable Energy Integration and Energy Security.The Declaration will do much to align regional ef-forts with universal goals to tackle energy issues.

The document exemplifies the foundingprinciples of OLADE, which are to promote eco-nomic, social and environmental sustainable de-velopment in the region.

It also reflects the objectives of the globalSustainable Energy for All initiative, which seeksto ensure universal access to modern energy serv-

ices, improved energy efficiency, and increasedlevels of renewables by 2030.

Among the nine main objectives of the Dec-laration are energy access, sustainability, and theincreased use of renewables (see box).

It also recognizes the need for regional soli-darity and cooperation in order to advance socialinclusion, despite the disparity among membercountries with regard to the availability of energyresources.

OFID promises supportOFID attended the Ministers’ Meeting at the in-vitation of OLADE Executive Secretary (2011–2013), Victorio Oxilia Dávalos, as one of eightobserving organizations.

Speaking on behalf of the institution, OFIDDirector-General, Suleiman J Al-Herbish pledgedto support the Latin American and Caribbeancountries in their united aim for energy develop-ment.

“In order to meet the expected increase indemand for energy services, major investmentswill be required. OFID will partner with countriesin the region to best attend to these priorities,”stated Al-Herbish.


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Mr Al-Herbish (center) attended the Ministers Meeting atthe invitation of outgoing OLADE Executive Secretary Victorio Oxilia Dávalos (left). Incoming OLADE ExecutiveSecretary Fernando Ferreira is pictured on the right.

At the meeting, Mr Al-Herbish proposed a joint OFID/OLADEseminar on “Energy Poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean”to take place at OFID headquarters in 2014.

Energy Integration and Sustainable Development

� Commitment to coordinate actions for the eff icient use of renewable and non-renewable regional resources

� To promote the use of hydropower and other renewable resources and to develop and implement eff icient harnessing technologies for more eff icient use of non-renewables

� To support actions and policies aimed at managing individual countries development and regional energy integration

� To continue studies to promote and foster energy integration

� To promote social inclusion through access to energy

� To join solidarity cooperation efforts, especially in regard to island countries’ access to energy resources

� To maintain commitment to support energy development as part of the reconstruction process of Haiti

� To continue the implementation of South-South cooperation

� To promote coordinated activities, alliances, and cooperation mechanisms to facilitate OLADE’s technical support in regard to energy

.

In a further endorsement of OLADE’s aims, theDirector-General proposed a joint OFID/OLADEseminar on “Energy Poverty in Latin America andthe Caribbean” to take place at OFID headquar-ters in 2014.

Latin American Energy OrganizationOLADE is the political and technical-support or-ganization which unites 27 member countriesfrom Latin America and the Caribbean in thecommon goal of regional and sub-regional en-ergy integration.

Born out of the Lima Declaration and Planof Action on Industrial Development and Coopera-tion, which was signed in November 1973, theorganization’s mission is “to contribute to inte-gration, sustainable development and energysecurity in the regions, advising and promotingcooperation and coordination among its mem-ber countries.”

Among OLADE’s members are OFID Mem-ber Country, Venezuela, and many OFID Part-ner Countries, including Cuba, DominicanRepublic, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaraguaand Paraguay, all of which OFID has supportedin energy-related projects. Additionally, OFIDMember, Algeria, is a participant country ofOLADE.

Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2013, theorganization has in recent years significantly in-creased its visibility and impact. This has beenmainly due to amplified activity and intensifiedcooperation with a variety of international insti-tutions and development banks.

Strategic alliances with partners, includingUN development agencies and regional organiza-tions have helped OLADE to expand its reach andefforts.

Challenges in the regionThe energy sector in Latin America and theCaribbean is unique. It has renewable and non-renewable resources that can provide long-termself-sufficiency and improved energy provision.

However, energy resources and supplyamong countries is disparate, and some 29 mil-lion people in the region live without access toelectricity. Countries need to increase reliabilityand broaden access to overcome serious chal-lenges of poverty and inequality. For this, coop-eration is paramount.

The challenges include increased resourc-ing and provision; improved legal, regulatoryand commercial aspects of energy integration;and the expansion of on-grid and off-grid net-works.

Intra-regional cooperation With sub-regional offices in a number of its mem-ber countries, OLADE is perfectly positioned topromote regional and sub-regional integration. Itacts as a platform for information disseminationand has a team of multidisciplinary energy ex-perts to support member country energy institu-tions.

In cooperation with ministries and other energy stakeholders, the organization brings together top energy officials to promote institu-tion strengthening and actively pursues itsaims through a multitude of monitoring projects,training workshops, seminars and events eachyear.

Through the Latin American Energy Effi-ciency Program, carried out with the support ofthe Austrian Development Cooperation, OLADEhas researched and recommended policies to beincorporated in countries’ national plans.

These policies promote security, environ-mental sustainability and social equity parame-ters—long-term goals that aim to promotesustainability and energy security, but whichhave been absent from the majority of the region’s national agendas. �


CONFERENCE WATCH

Declaration of Punta Cana

Dialogue and cooperation for changeSenior politicians and company CEOs fromacross Eurasia gathered in Vienna early Decem-ber for the third Annual Meeting of the Centerfor Global Dialogue and Cooperation (CGDC).

onvening under the theme Eurasian Inter-dependence on Overcoming the Crisis, the

CGDC brought together representatives from theworlds of politics and business to discuss some ofthe most pressing issues of the day.

This year’s theme focused on the challengesand possible solutions to Eurasia’s future on theglobal stage.

Among the several hundred participantswere HE Mr Rosen Plevneliev, President of the Re-public of Bulgaria, HE Dr Georgi Ivanov, Presidentof the Republic of Macedonia, and HE Mr JoséManuel Durão Barroso, President of the EuropeanCommission.

In his welcoming address, HE Petar Stoyanov, for-mer President of the Republic of Bulgaria andPresident and Founder of the CGDC, said that the meeting offered an opportunity for decision-makers from all over the world to discuss contem-porary problems and find creative solutions.

“Serious and responsible dialogue betweenpoliticians and businessmen must be encouraged;the consideration of ethical values and virtueslike honesty, credibility, responsibility, trans-parency and mutual trust in both business andpolitics count amongst the most important fac-tors in initiating a sustainable change,” he stated.

Stoyanov underlined the importance of thisyear’s theme, noting that “the supercontinentEurasia is strongly associated with the predic-tions, hopes and sometimes fears for the futureworld.”

He highlighted the geopolitical significanceof Eurasia for the economic and social develop-ment of the world, stating: “It is mostly Asia andnot so much Europe that is seen by many expertsas a means for reviving the global economy andgetting out of the global economic crisis.”


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Founded in 2009, theCGDC is a politically inde-pendent, international non-governmental organizationwhich promotes dialoguebetween business and poli-tics on the basis of ethicalprinciples.

The Center’s core belief isthat ethical values in busi-ness and politics are essen-tial for sustainable and stableglobal welfare. It seeks toconcentrate on supportingemerging countries in be-coming politically and eco-nomically stable partners.

It does so in various ways, including, among others:

� Encouraging communica-tion between business andpolitics both on a globaland on a regional level

� Enhancing cooperationand promoting businessglobally

� Helping to create trans-parency and responsibil-ity in terms of the legal,political and economicstandards in emergingcountries

� Cooperating with like-minded organizations,such as the ClintonGlobal Initiative, andmany others

Mutual support and cooperationA keynote speech was delivered by the Macedon-ian President, Dr Ivanov, who reiterated the im-portance of Eurasia as a topic, saying, “Itillustrates the significance of synergy through theprism of infrastructure, energy and economy.”

He stressed that Eurasia was more than thesimple sum of continents and countries and thatEurocentrism and Asiancentrism were thoughtpatterns that had to be avoided

“Eurasia is a bridge between Europe andAsia, a bridge between various regions and coun-tries. Europe and the European Union cannot dowithout Asia. Asia, however, needs Europe andthe European Union. We need to look throughthe prism of the overall profit for all of us,” he ex-plained.

The Macedonian President outlined variousopportunities for collaboration in the fields ofeconomy, energy, trade, infrastructure and com-munications. He pointed out that countries ofthe region increasingly recognized that theirprogress depended on cooperation and synergy.“Their projects gain greater importance if put inthe context of their neighbour” he stated.

Dr Ivanov concluded by emphasizing theneed for mutual support. “We need the dominoeffect, but not of instability, as we are used to, butof mutual support and cooperation.”

Panel sessionsIn a panel session on Eurasia’s positioning on theglobal stage, opinions were offered from differentnational and cultural perspectives, includingIndia, South Korea, China, Europe and America.

Mr Hemant Kanoria, Chairman and Manag-ing Director of SREI India, explained that thetopic of Eurasia was extremely relevant “as eachcontinent is trying to reinvent itself and define itsposition on the global stage.”

He said he saw a bright future for substantialcollaboration in the sectors of finance and infra-structure between Europe and across all of Asia.

OFID’s Director-General, Mr Suleiman J Al-Herbish, participated in the panel session entitled“Sustainable Energy for All.”

Energy has always been a major field of in-terest for the CGDC, and thus a traditional topicat its annual meeting.

Mr Al-Herbish’s intervention focused on en-ergy poverty and the means to address it. “OFIDconsiders energy to be a fundamental prerequisiteof poverty eradication and sustainable develop-ment,” he stressed.

“Without access to modern energy services,huge areas of the developing world face a darkand difficult future. They cannot power industry

and business. They cannot operate adequatehealth and education services. And they cannotgrow and distribute food.”

He said that energy poverty was a complexproblem with three interrelated components: ac-cessibility, affordability and reliability.

“This is why we have prioritized energy inour strategic framework through our Energy forthe Poor Initiative (EPI),” Al-Herbish explained.

He went on to reveal that, under the EPI,OFID had committed close to US$1bn through2012-2013 for 32 energy access projects. Ten ofthese involved renewable energy-based electricitygeneration and distribution.

Al-Herbish also referred to his recent partic-ipation in a meeting of the Advisory Board of theglobal Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) initia-tive in New York. He informed delegates that a fi-nance committee had been established to leadefforts to seek investor financing for energy proj-ects within the framework of this initiative.

The energy session was moderated bySlavtcho Neykov, Deputy CEO of the PetroleumIndustry of Serbia, who commented that the keymessage arising from the discussion was “the ev-idence that realism and pragmatism are necessarywhen it comes to strategic energy development,regardless whether we consider interventions bypoliticians, international organizations or privatebusiness.”

He concluded by saying: “However, it is thepoliticians who mostly owe a responsibility to so-ciety when working to establish a frameworkwhich allows adequate development beyondtheir political mandate.”

2013 CGDC Awards The meeting concluded with the annual CGDCawards ceremony, which honours exceptional in-dividuals for their inspirational personality andoutstanding commitment to promoting peaceand cooperation amongst diverse people throughtheir vision and leadership.

This year, the CGDC issued four awards. Theaward for “Enhancing mutual understanding anddialogue amongst diverse people” was presentedto HE Mr José Manuel Durão Barroso, President ofthe European Commission.

HE Mr Nursultan Nazarbayev, President ofthe Republic of Kazakhstan, was honored for hiscontribution to “Enhancing social business dia-logue.”

Dr Mikhail Safarbekovich Gutseriev, Presi-dent of OAO NK RussNeft, received the award for“Enhancing intercultural dialogue.”

The fourth award went to Austrian skydiv-ing world record holder, Mr Felix Baumgartner,for “Enhancing sport in dialogue.” �


CONFERENCE WATCH

About the CGDC

smile lit up the face of AmadouBoubacar Cissé, when we met for the

OFID Quarterly interview after the donors’meeting on December 9. He replied warmlyto my greeting of “assalamualaikum” andasked about the country I come from. Upon hearing Indonesia, his smile grewwider.

Cissé is evidently a happy man. “I amextremely satisfied with the outcome oftoday’s meeting,” he said. “It went ex-tremely well in the sense that the financinggap of over US$158m has been filled; in fact,the various donors involved in the projecthave agreed to finance up to US$172m. Weare extremely pleased about the confidenceof the donors in Niger and its developmentplan,” he added.

If Cissé looked enthusiastic when hetalked about the Kandadji Dam, it was notmerely because the project falls under hisportfolio as minister of planning, but alsobecause the dam is pivotal to Niger’s devel-opment.

On completion, the dam will bringmany benefits to the people of Niger. First,it will make the country secure in terms ofelectricity production. And second, it willenhance food security by allowing for thedevelopment of a large irrigation program.

This vast landlocked country faceshuge climatic challenges. Almost everyother year, rain shortages affect food pro-

duction. There is thus an urgent need tomake the agriculture sector more depend-ent on irrigation. This is an area where theKandadji Dam can make a significant con-tribution.

Last but not least, the dam will im-prove the use of the Niger River as an inlandwaterway and increase clean water re-sources.

“So, in a nutshell the Kandadji Dam isa very comprehensive project, and it willtouch upon many aspects of developmentin Niger,” Cissé explained.

Population challengesCovering an area of about 1.3 million sq km(more than twice the size of France, whichcolonized it), Niger is the fourth largestcountry in Africa, with a total populationof about 17 million in 2012.

Following rather low economicgrowth between 2000 and 2011, the coun-try’s economy expanded by an impressive11.2 percent in 2012. This was largely due toincreased production from Niger’s uraniummines and growing output from its newly-started oil industry.

Despite the country’s recent high eco-nomic growth, however, further improve-ments are still needed, as indicated by itslow position in the Human DevelopmentIndex published by the United Nations De-velopment Program.

According to Cissé, one of the most press-ing challenges is the high birth rate, whichstands at about four percent per year. Hepointed out that the admirable economicgrowth had not been evenly felt as it hadbeen eroded by the needs of the increasingpopulation.

“We need to curb population growthin order for all the people of Niger to reallyfeel the positive impacts of the economicgrowth,” Cissé said.

Cissé realizes that lowering popula-tion growth is no easy job. The task con-tains many factors, including the sensitiveissue of religion. Islam is the major religionin Niger, and family planning is not a sim-ple subject matter in the eyes of Moslemcommunities. Cissé himself comes fromone of the families that was involved in es-tablishing Islam in Niger. His family has al-ways held a leading position in Niger’sIslamic community.

“But as you well know, Indonesia suc-cessfully resolved this issue many yearsago,” he said, referring to the fact that In-donesia is the world’s largest Moslem coun-try, yet it still succeeded in implementing afamily planning policy.

I realized that was why Cissé’s smilegrew wider upon hearing at the beginningof the interview that my home country isIndonesia. He intends to make Indonesiathe main model for a family planning pro-gram in his country.


Niger: Placing high hopes on the Kandadji Dam

Following a recent donors’ meeting at OFID to discuss funding for Niger’sKandadji Dam, Nigerien Minister of Planning, Amadou Boubacar Cissé,spoke to the Quarterly about the importance of the dam for his country’s energy and agriculture sectors and revealed some of the other challengesfacing his West African homeland.

PERSPECTIVES

by Arya Gunawan Usis

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Education for girls and husbandsCissé also stressed the importance of educa-tion in overcoming population challenges.The leadership of his country—PresidentMahamadou Issoufou and Prime MinisterBrigi Rafini—believes in more access to education for girls, including mandatoryattendance until the age of 16. This, theyfeel, would contribute to curbing popula-tion growth, as it would increase awarenessamong girls regarding their role in family-related issues.

Cissé went on to explain another pro-gram being implemented in Niger to ad-dress the population issue: “husbands’school” (or “Ecole des Maris” as it is betterknown in French, the official language ofNiger).

This program—supported by the UNpopulation agency, UNFPA—aims to in-volve men in health promotion and fostera change in behavior at community level.Members meet around twice a month toanalyze and discuss specific cases withinthe community in the field of reproductivehealth. This interaction is important sinceit gives the members insight into how theyeach perceive maternal health issues andproblems.

According to Cissé, this experiment isbearing fruit. “It is working very well. It

pays, on the ground, that in Niger society,husbands have the power to decide. And bymaking them aware of all the problems,they—by their own will—decide to reducethe number of children they have.”

Win-win partnerships Cissé also explained that apart from en-hancing the agriculture sector, which hasbeen the backbone of Niger’s economy, hisgovernment is ready to develop the miningand energy sectors. Niger has mineral re-sources, particularly uranium, and also oiland gas reserves.

Based on information from othersources, the Quarterly was able to determinethat Niger is increasing its uranium produc-tion capacity, from 4,000 tonnes to 9,000tonnes per year by 2016. This would makeNiger the world’s second largest uraniumexporter, after Kazakhstan.

According to Cissé, Niger wants tomake the most of its mineral and energy re-sources, through win-win partnershipswith its partners. Cissé is confident that themining and energy sectors will bring vari-ous advantages to the people of Niger, in-cluding more jobs and the transfer ofknowledge.

“This way, Niger will soon have a moreeducated middle class, and a better chanceto move out of poverty,” said Cissé.

Global vision Cissé understands very well that to con-tinue its development, Niger will need sup-port from international partners.

Cissé himself is a veteran in the fieldof international development, havingworked for the World Bank for more than14 years and for the Islamic DevelopmentBank for six years.

He also served as the Prime Minister ofNiger on two occasions, from February 8 to21, 1995 and again from December 21 1996to November 27 1997.

His experience in international devel-opment has enabled him to include aglobal vision in Niger’s 2012-2015 Economicand Social Development Plan. This plan hasset medium as well as long-term objectives,and major undertakings that will be donein the country. To implement this plan,support from international organizations isneeded.

“Niger has made a lot of progress inmobilizing the resources to implement theplan with the help of our internationalpartners. We will do our best to increase ourimplementation capacity,” Cissé said, con-cluding the interview.

With Niger’s abundance of natural re-sources and its innovative approach to deal-ing with endemic challenges, Cissé’soptimism is well placed indeed. �


PERSPECTIVES

Amadou Boubacar Cissé, Minister of Planning of Niger, spoke optimistically about his country’s development prospects during the interview.

UAE steps up investment in solar energy

This past year, the United Arab Emirates hasbeen advancing its vision of a more sustain-able energy future with the launch of utility-scale solar power both at home and abroad.

ne of the world’s largest solar facilities hasbeen operating in the western desert of

Abu Dhabi for close to nine months, quietly powering some 20,000 households and displac-ing 175,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide—theequivalent of removing 15,000 cars from roads orplanting 1.5 million trees.

Aptly-named SHAMS 1 (Arabic for Sun), the100 MW concentrated solar power (CSP) plantwas developed as a joint venture between the gov-ernment-owned Masdar company (60 percent),French energy giant, Total (20 percent) andSpain’s Abengoa Solar (20 percent) at a total costof US$600m.

“SHAMS 1 is a strategic investment in ourcountry’s economic, social and environmentalprosperity,” announced UAE President and Rulerof Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed alNahyan, at the plant’s March 17 inauguration.

“The domestic production of renewable en-ergy extends the life of our valuable hydrocarbonresources and supports the growth of a promisingnew industry.”

A long-term visionSolar and other renewables (including wind andwaste-to-energy) are to make up seven percent ofAbu Dhabi’s energy capacity by 2020. Neighbor-ing Dubai has targeted five percent of capacity by2030.

A planned US$3.3bn complex, the Mo-hammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park(named in honor of the UAE Prime Minister andRuler of Dubai) is expected to supply 1000 MW ofclean energy towards that goal.

Dubai activated phase one—a 13 MW pho-tovoltaic (PV) plant—on October 22, 2013. It is

Dubai’s first solar installation and the largest ofits kind in the MENA region. Constructed by FirstSolar, a US-based manufacturer, at a cost ofUS$34m, the facility opened in record time—amere 28 weeks after crews broke ground—some30 km southeast of the city.

“This is the first milestone on the way toachieving our energy strategy,” said Saeed Mo-hammed Al Tayer, CEO of the Dubai Electricity &Water Authority (DEWA). “It will go a long wayin setting the trend for non-conventional energyresources in the region.”

A 100 MW PV plant is next on Dubai’s solaragenda. DEWA will hold a 51 percent stake andplans to invite bids from private partners in mid-2014 for an estimated 2017 completion date.

DEWA and its Abu Dhabi counterpart arealso finalizing proposals for solar FIT (feed-in-tar-iff) rooftop schemes that would allow UAE resi-dents to generate their own clean energy and sellexcess electricity back to the national grid.

Pursuing diversificationEven a country with some of the largest oil re-serves on the planet has to reevaluate how to bestsustain the energy requirements of a populationthat is amongst the fastest growing in the world.

According to the UAE Ministry of Energy,per capita energy consumption in the country isthree times the global average, driven up by theuse of air-conditioning and saltwater desalinationactivities.

Relying on its hydrocarbon riches to supplydomestic energy is proving increasingly cost-ineffective for the UAE. With oil prices aboveUS$100 a barrel and skyrocketing costs for naturalgas, conserving hydrocarbon output for exportwill maximize revenue for local reinvestment.

Meanwhile the price of solar PV systems hasdropped by more than 50 percent in the past fiveyears, according to Vahid Fotuhi, President of theMiddle East Solar Industry Association. He says:“As a result, generating electricity from solarpower is now cheaper than using diesel.”

Environmental concerns cannot be dis-counted either. The UAE was one of the first oil-producing countries to ratify the Kyoto protocolon climate change in 2005. Rising sea levels, as a


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by Nadia Benamara

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result of global warming, would endanger its owncoastlines, where 85 percent of the populationand 90 percent of infrastructure is located.

To date, Abu Dhabi has committed someUS$20bn to renewable technology through itsMasdar initiative. Besides utility-scale plants suchas SHAMS 1, investments include Masdar City, asustainable urban development and clean techhub that houses the International Renewable En-ergy Agency (IRENA) and the Masdar Institute—a graduate level university and cutting-edgeresearch facility.

Developing industry infrastructure andhuman capacity in renewables is a means for thegovernment to extend its energy leadership be-yond its vast but finite hydrocarbon resources. It isa bold move towards economic diversification,which the UAE has been pursuing on several fronts.

Beyond bordersThe scalability, speed of deployment, and afford-ability that make solar power such an attractiveproposition in the UAE are making it an increas-ingly viable option for developing countries aswell.

As part of its pledge to the global SustainableEnergy for All Initiative, Abu Dhabi provided aUS$350m concessional loan and US$50m grantfor renewable energy projects through IRENA—the first leading international organization to beheadquartered in an Arab country.

Thanks to UAE support, the West African na-tion of Mauritania is now home to the conti-nent’s largest solar PV facility—the 15 MW SheikhZayed bin Sultan plant. It will provide approxi-mately 10 percent of the country’s total electricity

capacity. Prior to its April 2013 launch, Maurita-nia was only able to access 144 MW using high-cost and highly polluting diesel power.

Smaller scale projects that the UAE fundedin 2013 include 600 off-grid solar PV systems forisolated communities in Afghanistan, and a 500KW solar PV farm that went into operation onVava’u in Tonga on November 25. The latter isfully integrated with the island’s existing dieselpower station and will produce 13 percent of thePolynesian Kingdom’s annual demand.

Technological advancesDespite its many benefits, solar power is not with-out its drawbacks. PV systems work best under di-rect sun. Passing clouds can result in anintermittent electricity supply, which no grid op-erator likes to contend with. SHAMS 1’s signifi-cantly more costly thermal CSP technology isable to store energy for up to 16 hours.

Seemingly ideal conditions in the UAE(abundant sunlight and flat open land) poseother challenges. Intense heat and desert sandslower the efficiency of individual PV panels.

Dubai selected its PV provider, First Solar, inpart because its thin-film cadmium telluride(CdTe) cells resist heat better than more conven-tional silicon-based ones. The company also de-veloped a special waterless panel-cleaning systemto deal with the high-volume of debris.

Masdar’s CEO Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jabarnonetheless predicts: “With global energy de-mand expected to nearly double by 2030, renew-able energy will play an increasingly importantrole, especially in countries where demand is rap-idly outstripping supply.” �

Developing industry infrastructure andhuman capacity in

renewables is a means forthe government to extend

its energy leadership beyond its vast but finitehydrocarbon resources.

MEMBER STATES FOCUS

SHAMS 1, the world's largest concentrated solar power plant in operation, in the desert of Abu Dhabi, UAE. Covering an area of 2.5 km2, the plant is capable of delivering green electricity to 20,000 homes.


MEMBER STATES FOCUS

Indonesia hosts first World Culture ForumWith over 300 distinct native ethnicities, some 746 living languages spoken, and a national motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ikathat proposes Unity in Diversity, the Republic of Indonesia could not have been better suited to host the first World Culture Forum this past November 24-27.

by Nadia Benamara

PHOTO: SONNY TUMBELAKA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

eld on the magical island of Bali, the firstever World Culture Forum (WCF) brought

together over 1,000 official delegates and cul-tural practitioners to explore the intersection between culture and sustainable developmentpractices.

“We already have a World Economic Forumand the World Social Forum for critical discus-sions on globalization,” said President SusiloBambang Yudhoyono in his opening address.“However, we are yet to have a global forum for meaningful dialogue on the importance of culture.”

“Culture is who we are,” said Irina Bokova,Director General of UNESCO, under whose pa-tronage the WCF took place. “It shapes what wedo and how we see the world. It is also a force fordialogue, for building bridges of respect and mu-tual understanding between people and com-munities.”

Bali PromiseThe three-day mix of ministerial level meetings,intergovernmental and non-governmental round-tables and talks culminated in the issuance of the Bali Promise, a succinct declaration that callson governments to fully commit to the integra-tion of culture in the post-2015 developmentagenda.

Among the 10 recommendations of thePromise are pledges to strengthen communityownership of development programs, to supportthe mainstreaming of gender concerns, to pro-mote local knowledge systems, and to find newmodalities for valuing and measuring culture’srole in sustainable development.

“Indonesia has already taken a number ofmeasures to make culture a driver of sustainabledevelopment, “ said President Yudhoyono, whoserves as co-chair of the UN’s High-Level Panelon the Post-2015 Development Agenda. “This in-cludes the development of sustainable culturaltourism and cultural infrastructure.”

Keynote speakers at the Forum includednoted CNN commentator, Fareed Zakaria. Heconceded that culture was a key driver of devel-opment but doubted whether it alone could beheld responsible for one country’s success or an-other’s demise.

Speculating that China’s eagerness to learnfrom the best had certainly contributed to itseconomic advancement, Zakaria neverthelesscautioned against cultural appropriation. “I pitythe anthropologist,” he said. “There are no na-tives left to study because they are all drinkingStarbucks.”

Nobel prize-winning Indian economist,Amartya Sen championed the protean nature of

human identity. Identity cannot be boiled downto something so singular or fixed as race and re-ligion. Such reductionist views of people, letalone whole societies, are “a remarkably efficientway of misunderstanding nearly everyone in theworld,” he said.

Varying aspects of cultureSix symposia covered a wide-range of topics,from Sustainable Urban Development to Inter-faithDialogue and Community Building.

The challenge outlined by organizers inCreativity and Cultural Economics was how toshift “the paradigm of the deficit model of cul-ture in development to an empowering frame-work.”

Cultural and creative industries are in factone of the fastest growing sectors of the globaleconomy with 17.6 percent growth rate in theMiddle East, 13.9 percent in Africa, 11.9 percentin South America, and 9.7 percent in Asia, ac-cording to a recent UN report.

In Civil Society and Cultural Economics, par-ticipants advocated for new, bottom up ap-proaches to community development. Localdisaster and reconstruction specialist, YennyRahmayati showcased her volunteer-run AcehHeritage Community Foundation, which hasbeen rehabilitating historic sites in the Tsunami-affected region of Indonesia. Grassroots effortsand governments alike can only benefit from theimplementation of coordinating mechanisms,she insisted.

Indonesia’s former Minister of Social Wel-fare, Dr Anank Agung Gede Agung introducedthe Balinese concept of Tri Hita Karana to theCulture in Environmental Sustainability section.Depicted as three over-lapping rings, it is a prin-ciple of harmony between men, nature and god,that guides the 1,000 year old rice farming prac-tices for which Bali is famed.

UNESCO designated this so-called Subaksystem—with its five terraced rice fields and re-spective water temples—one of Indonesia’s eightWorld Heritage Sites in 2012. The cooperativeand ecologically sustainable method has al-lowed the Balinese to become the most prolificrice growers in the archipelago.

Indonesia has already committed to hostthe next WCF in 2016. This one concluded withat least one glowing review:

“UNESCO is very happy to see the out-standing cooperation the government of In-donesia has demonstrated throughout theForum, which is marvelous, harmonic and successful,” said Francesco Bandarin, Assistant Director General for Culture. �


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The Bali Promise calls on governments to fully commit to the integration of culture

in the post-2015 development agenda.

164th Meeting of the OPEC Conference maintains ceilingEconomic picture improving, but Ministers continue cautious approach to oil output

PEC’s Oil and Energy Ministers, at theircustomary end-of-year talks in Vienna,

again exercised caution over the impendingglobal economic recovery in deciding to retainthe Organization’s oil production ceiling for thefirst half of 2014.

“… in the interest of maintaining oil marketequilibrium, the Conference decided to maintainthe current (OPEC) production level of 30.0 mil-lion barrels/day,” a communique issued at the endof the one-day meeting in early December said.

It stressed that, in taking the decision, theOrganization’s Member Countries re-confirmedtheir readiness to respond swiftly to develop-ments which could have an adverse impact onthe maintenance of an orderly and balanced oilmarket.

And given the uncertainties arising from the en-during weaknesses in the world economy, dele-gates agreed on the need to remain vigilant.

Close monitoringThe Conference directed the OPEC Secretariat tocontinue its close monitoring of developments insupply and demand, as well as non-fundamentalfactors, such as speculative activity, keepingMember Countries well informed of develop-ments.

It also decided to extend the tenure of Ab-dalla Salem El-Badri as Secretary General for a pe-riod of one year, with effect from January 1, 2014.

“I think at this time the decision we havemade is excellent. By maintaining current pro-duction, we have taken into consideration thewelfare of both the producers and the con-sumers,” El-Badri said at the press briefing follow-ing the Ministerial talks.

“At this time, everybody is happy. We do notwant to disturb things at the moment. Leavethings as they are and let us see what transpires aswe head towards June next year,” he replied in an-swer to a question about OPEC’s decision tomaintain existing production.

Asked about a possible oil oversupply in themarket occurring in 2014, due to the lower call onOPEC oil and the projected higher non-OPECsupply, El-Badri said that at the present time thissituation should not be over-exaggerated.

“At the OPEC Secretariat in Vienna, we arewatching the market very carefully—day in, dayout. When we see any irregularity in the marketfundamentals, we will talk to our Ministers,” heaffirmed.

Prompted for his views on shale or tight oil,the OPEC Secretary General announced that theOrganization had made its own study on the new


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Libya’s Abdalla Salem El-Badri was extended as OPEC Secretary General for a period of one year.

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resource and had assessed the situation using abottom-up approach.

“We welcome this ‘newcomer’ to the mar-ket, as I like to refer to it. It is a benefit for the mar-ket, a benefit for the consumers—a benefit foreverybody,” he maintained.

El-Badri said that, right now, shale oil produc-tion in the United States stood at around 2.7m b/d.

“It is only in this country (the US) that wehave such a large quantity. But this productionlevel is increasing. And we see it rising until 2018,after which it will decline.

“Yes, the call on OPEC oil will be reduced alittle bit as a result of this from 2017 to 2020, butit is really not that big a quantity.”

Technological boostEl-Badri observed that there was the possibilitythat technology could improve the productionoperations of tight oil.

“We don’t know—but we see that the de-cline rates are quite high and that it is expensiveto produce.

“In OPEC, we do not say that we are not con-cerned about this development, but when onelooks at the overall market situation, we welcomethis newcomer and we can accommodate it,” heasserted.

Asked about the possibility of the US startingcrude oil exports because of the increase in itsshale oil output, El-Badri said he could not com-ment on this. “If and when the Americans takethat action, we shall see what we can do.”

He stated that OPEC would continue to pro-duce at 30m b/d and the Organization, with orwithout shale oil, saw all its demand coming fromthe East.

“In fact, 88–90 percent of all energy demandis coming from this region,” he added.

Responding to a question about the situa-tion in Iran with the possible lifting of sanctionsby the US and whether this could lead to a crudeoversupply, El-Badri pointed out that OPEC wasvery happy that there was a negotiation betweenIran and the US about lifting the oil embargo,which had been in place for a very long time.

“Iran is a Founder Member of OPEC. It haslarge petroleum reserves and possesses the man-power to increase oil production. The same situa-tion exists with Iraq. I am really glad that thereare positive signs from both of these FounderMembers.”

But El-Badri said at such a time that OPECsaw increased quantities of production comingon to the market from these countries, “then, ofcourse, we would look at the situation and decidewhat best action to take. �

The 164th Meeting of the OPECConference in session. Seated onthe main table are: Mustafa JassimMohammad Al-Shamali (center),then Deputy Prime Minister andMinister of Oil of Kuwait and President of the OPEC Conferencefor 2013; Abdalla Salem El-Badri(right), OPEC Secretary General;and Yasser M Mufti (left), Saudi Arabian Governor for OPEC andChairman of the OPEC Board ofGovernors for 2013.

� “The negotiations between the US and Iran willtake six months … but we are watching the situa-tion very carefully. The overriding concern forOPEC is that we hope this embargo will be over.”

Concerning his extension as Secretary Gen-eral for a further 12 months, El-Badri said hewanted to thank the Organization’s Oil and En-ergy Ministers for the trust they had placed inhim in this regard.

During their deliberations, the Ministers re-viewed the oil market outlook, as presented bythe Secretary General, in particular supply/de-mand projections for 2014.

Importantly, Ministers looked at the globaleconomic outlook, again taking note of “the highsovereign debt in the Eurozone; the high unem-ployment in the advanced economies, especiallythe Eurozone; and the slow growth, coupled withinflation risk, in the emerging economies.”

Stressed the communique: “Indeed, thebiggest challenge facing global oil markets in2014 is this global economic uncertainty, withthe fragility of the Eurozone remaining a causefor concern.”

It was also noted that, although world oil de-mand was forecast to increase during 2014, thiswould be more than offset by the projected in-crease in non-OPEC supply.

All of OPEC’s data shows that the interna-tional oil market is receiving ample supplies ofcrude, while petroleum stocks in the industrial-ized countries are at healthy levels going into thenorthern hemisphere winter. Crude oil prices arealso at comfortable levels, both for the producersand consumers, as well as for the investors.

There are also signs that oil demand, especially inthe OECD region, will begin to pick up once moreas debt-troubled economies continue to showpositive signs of recovery, albeit tentative andslow.

In fact, such was the level of overall opti-mism over oil’s performance that some OPECMinisters announced before the Conference thatthey thought the best course of action to takewould be to retain the existing production ceil-ing.

Before entering the meeting, Ali I Naimi,Saudi Arabian Minister of Petroleum and MineralResources, told reporters that the oil market wasin the best position it could be in.

“I am not pessimistic about the market. Oildemand is great, inventories are well positioned,economic growth is improving and the currentoil price of around $110/b is the right price,” hewas quoted as saying.

Attending to administrative matters, theConference elected Dr Abdel Bari Ali Al-Arousi,Minister of Oil and Gas of Libya, as President ofthe Conference for one year, with effect from Jan-uary 1, 2014, and Mrs Diezani Alison-MaduekeCON, Minister of Petroleum Resources of Nige-ria, as Alternate President for the same period.

The Ministers also appointed Dr Ali ObaidAl Yabhouni, the United Arab Emirates’ Gover-nor for OPEC, as Chairman of the Board of Gov-ernors for 2014, and Dr Bernard Mommer,Venezuelan Governor for OPEC, as AlternateChairman.

The Conference decided that its next Ordi-nary Meeting will convene on June 11, 2014. �


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Ali I Naimi, Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia (right) with HRH Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman (left),Assistant Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia.

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Documents

Energy access for the poor: Can a decade make a difference? times a year by the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID). OFID is the development finance agency established in