Regional Expert Meetings on Climate

Change and Enhanced Renewable Energy

Deployment in Africa

Regional dialogues on renewable energy aspects of climate change programmes

and strategies included in the intended nationally determined contributions

(INDC)

Final Report

Regional Expert Meetings on Climate Change and Enhanced Renewable

Energy Deployment in Africa

Table of Contents

The Regional Expert Meetings_______________________________________________________ 3

Climate Change and Renewable Energy in Africa ______________________________________ 5 ________________________________________________________________________________________ 7 1. Renewable energy provisions in the INDCs _______________________________________________ 7 2. Renewable energy finance and project development _______________________________________ 8

2.1. Mobilising domestic resources through public and private sector engagement _________________ 9 2.2. Mobilising international resources using market mechanisms and carbon pricing ______________ 9 2.3. The importance of quality data and information for project development ____________________ 10

3. The way forward: from INDCs to NDCs ________________________________________________ 10 4. Conclusion and suggested recommendations _____________________________________________ 13 5. Annex _____________________________________________________________________________ 14

5.1. Agenda ________________________________________________________________________ 14

Agenda of Regional Expert Meeting on West Africa ____________________________________ 14 Agenda of Regional Expert Meeting on East and Southern Africa _________________________ 14 Agenda of Regional Expert Meeting on Central Africa __________________________________ 14

5.2. List of Participants _______________________________________________________________ 14 Participants at Regional Expert Meeting on West Africa _________________________________ 14 Participants at Regional Expert Meeting on East and Southern Africa ______________________ 14 Participants at Regional Expert Meeting on Central Africa _______________________________ 14

5.3. Presentations ____________________________________________________________________ 14

Figure 1 – Comparison: Generation mix in 2013 and with Africa REmap options. Source: IRENA, 2015 .................. 6

Box – The African Renewable Energy Initiative (www.arei.org, 2015) ____________________________________ 8 Figure 2 - Leveraging Climate Financing for Renewables. Source: Baker & McKenzie, 2016 .................................... 9

The Regional Expert Meetings

With over two thirds of global emissions coming from the energy sector, action to reduce carbon intensity

in energy production and consumption has become critical in the fight against climate change. In many of

the intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) for climate action under the framework of the

Paris agreement on climate change, enhanced renewable energy deployment is highlighted as a key strategy

to achieve de-carbonisation of the energy sector and thus, to enhance climate action.

All of the 53 African countries which submitted INDCs included renewable energy targets. However, the

level of detail regarding renewable energy varies from country to country. In some cases, there is specific

information on the relevant targets envisaged while in others, countries allude to possible reform of the

energy sector to increase the share of renewable energy in their respective national energy mix. While these

joint regional expert meetings intended to focus on the elaboration and impact of INDCs, the main objective

was to relate them to countries’ ongoing efforts to deploy renewables and get on a path towards low-carbon,

resilient development.

The Regional Expert Meetings on Climate Change and Renewable Energy, held on 29 February – 1 March

2016, on 17 – 18 March 2016 and 31 May – 1 June 2016 in Dakar, Addis Ababa and Libreville, respectively,

served as a platform for national climate and energy experts from Africa to convene and discuss the

contributions to climate change put forward in the lead up to COP21, the 21st session of the Conference of

the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Paris in

December 2016. Support to organise the meetings was provided by the Government of Sweden. These

meetings were organised by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in partnership with the

Economic Community for Central African States (ECCAS), ECOWAS Regional Centre on Renewable

Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

(UNECA), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC) Regional Collaboration Centres (RCCs) in Lomé and Kampala, the West African

Development Bank and the East African Development Bank.

The expert meetings aimed to raise awareness on the renewable energy aspects of the INDCs and efforts

countries were willing to make to address climate issues. The meetings brought together national climate

and energy experts to chart how to further refine the renewable energy part of INDCs as part of the overall

exercise to revise their INDCs for re-submission in the context of the Paris agreement.

The organisation of these strategic dialogues came in response to requests from policy makers in Africa to

the various organising partners. African countries hope for assistance with their efforts to enhance

renewable energy as part of ambitious climate strategies.

In total, over 150 participants attended the meetings with about 40 at the Dakar meeting, about 60 at the

Addis Ababa meeting and 50 at the Libreville one. The meeting in Dakar gathered climate and energy

representatives from Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, Benin, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Niger,

Nigeria, Togo and Senegal as well as a representative of ECCAS, and the meeting in Addis Ababa gathered

representatives from Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mauritius, Swaziland, South Africa and Zimbabwe. The

meeting in Libreville gathered representatives from 10 member-states of the ECCAS including Burundi,

Central African Republic, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Gabon, Sao

Tome and Principe, Rwanda and Chad. International organisations, donors, legal advisors and private

companies, banking institutions and civil society institutions were also present during the meetings. Among

the resource people were experts drawn from the African Union Commission, Central Africa Forests

Commission, the Development Bank of Central African States, Central African Economic and Monetary

Community Central African Power Pool, , Energies des Grands Lacs, West African Development Bank,

Biotherm Energy, the Office of Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme

of South Africa, the Climate Investment Funds, Get2C, United Nations Development Programme, Baker

& McKenzie, Climate and Development Knowledge Network, and Camco Clean Energy.

The expert meetings were structured to allow discussions on:

The context of climate change action in Africa and the present and projected potential of renewable

energy ;

Renewable energy measures provided for in the INDCs; and

Issues relating to financing and investments for renewable energy, which are highly relevant for

the realisation of the plans and strategies included in the INDCs.

The participants in both the meetings discussed issues for consideration when moving ahead with further

revision of INDCs in accordance with the Paris agreement.

The programme, list of participants and presentations made at the meeting are attached to this report.

Climate Change and Renewable Energy in Africa

Climate change poses significant challenges to Africa’s development, a situation that is further compounded

by poverty, demographic and infrastructural limitations. In addition, the high cost of electricity on the

continent is an impediment to industrialisation and the achievement of development objectives in many

developing countries.

According to the latest report from the IPCC – the Fifth Assessment Report, human influence on the global

climate change is discernible with the greenhouse gas emissions continuing to increase. The more the

climate change disruptions, the more the risk of devastating impact. This means that reducing the

greenhouse gas emissions could reduce the rate of the expected climate change impacts. There are sufficient

means to addresses these changes in the context of development in a manner that is mutually reinforceable

and beneficial to all. While the tendency has been for climate change and development issues to be

discussed separately, it is crucial for African countries to consider these simultaneously.

Addressing the greenhouse gas emissions requires mitigation options that are compatible with the 2 degrees

objectives and energy is at the heart of stabilising greenhouse gas emissions. This requires the use of carbon

neutral technologies. For instance, renewable energy, widely acknowledged as a solution to climate change,

will have to be increased in the global energy mix by up to four times by 2050.

For Africa, this offers an opportunity due to the low level of energy development and emissions.

Africa is home to 15% of the global population. Yet, it represents only 5% of the global energy use and

currently consume only one quarter of the global average energy per capita, using a mix of hydropower,

fossil fuels and biomass – mostly in traditional uses. Over 600 million had no access to electricity, and 700

million (68% of the population) are living without access to clean cooking facilities. If these current energy

access trends continue, there will still be 655 million people in Africa (42% of the population) without

access to power, and 866 million (56% of the population) without clean cooking facilities in 2030, depriving

the majority of the population of the opportunity to pursue a healthy and productive life.

The social and economic models in many African countries make them more suitable for low carbon

decentralised technologies.

Africa is also endowed with vast renewable energy sources, which offer abundant opportunities for

improving energy security. However these energy resources, are not distributed evenly. More than half of

the hydroelectric potential of the African continent (58%) is located in Central Africa. West Africa has

about 23,000 MW of feasible large and small hydropower potential with only 16% exploited. There is also

a huge potential for all forms of bioenergy (e.g. biomass, biogas, biofuel). Many of the countries have

considerable wind power potential. Some Central African countries have great potential for solar energy in

particular Chad and the Central African Republic, where photovoltaic systems for production of major

powers can be installed. For other countries, decentralised photovoltaic systems can meet the needs of rural

populations.

Many countries in Africa have experienced impressive economic growth in recent years in terms of GDP,

with some countries recording double-digit growth. However, this growth has been based on exprt of raw

materials and has not been inclusive, with paoverty levels continuing to rise in the region. If the levels of

growth in terms of GDP is to be maintained by 2030, GDP will increase and energy demand will also

increase, with electricity demand projected to triple by 2030. This is a good opportunity for renewable

energy for the replacement of fossil fuels with the added benefit of multiple environmental gains and more

inclusive employment. According to IRENA Renewable energy road map to 2030, renewable energy could

supply 22% of Africa’s total final energy consumption by 2030, compared to 5% in 2013.

In the power sector, the share of renewables could grow to 50% by 2030 with hydropower and wind capacity

reaching 100 GW capacity each, followed by a solar capacity of over 90 GW. Realising this would require

investments in the power sector to the tune of USD 70 billion per year from now to 2030, and could unlock

significant business opportunities and job creation.

However, some barriers today hinder the full exploitation of these potentials. These include the lack of

appropriate and comprehensive policy, regulatory and institutional framework and limited finance and

investments. Yet, there are strategic approaches to improving access despite barriers. Some of which have

been used in advancing various renewable projects in Ghana and Cape Verde. There are still many

challenges to renewable energy development in Africa such as:

Weak private sector involvement in the development of renewable energy and energy access,

insufficient human resources and expertise and low-skilled personnel:

Inadequacy of national bodies dedicated to the development of renewable energy;

Insufficient intra-regional electricity interconnection;

Lack of reliable databases on renewable energy;

Weakness in the coordination and harmonisation of regional initiatives

Limited access to finance and investments

According to the participating member-countries of the meeting, a transition to a low carbon future in Africa

would require a lifestyle change and shift in the mind-sets. This could be enabled by policy and legislative

frameworks that could provide incentives and provide for continuity in investments and practices. In

addition, education and awareness raising will play an important role. Many participants put forward the

range of action plans, policies, and programmes relating to renewable energy and underscored the need for

robust coordination to ensure that the overall objectives and visions are realised.

Figure 1 – Comparison: Generation mix in 2013 and with Africa REmap options. Source: IRENA, 2015

Box 1 – The African Renewable Energy Initiative (www.arei.org, 2015)

1. Renewable energy provisions in the INDCs

In the lead up to COP21, countries were invited to put forward their Intended nationally determined

contributions (INDCs) – plans for action on climate change, that are reflective of national priorities and

circumstances. The INDCs were meant to be presented in a manner that facilitated clarity and

understanding of what countries intended to do and be ambitious, in that they went beyond business as

usual.

According to the Paris Agreement, these INDCs would be formalised by the Parties into the Agreement as

nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to form the basis for global action. They would be reviewed

and revised every five years to enhance their ambition.

All African countries (with the exception of Libya) submitted their INDCs, which covered mitigation and

adaptation action across all sectors. Renewable energy is featured most of the countries in sub-saharan

Africa.. The renewable energy provisions were framed in different ways, with some of the countries

providing targets and objectives in the form of capacity increments or in terms of the total share of

renewables envisaged in the energy supply by a certain date. In some cases, there is a general mention of

the intention to increase renewable energy while a few countries list a discrete set of activities they propose

to undertake.

The majority of African INDCs indicate their alignment with existing policies and strategies. For example,

Ethiopia’s INDC is anchored in the framework of its Growth and Transformation Plan being spearheaded

by the National Planning Commission. Kenya has formulated its INDC in relation to the National Climate

Change Strategy while Zimbabwe builds on its National Climate Change Response Strategy. Nigeria’s

INDC was framed based on its 2012 National Climate Change Policy Response and Strategy, the Vision

20: 2020 and the Transformation Agenda (2011-2015), an agenda that converts priority policies and

programmes to concrete projects. In general, it can be deduced that the INDCs are guided by broader climate

change policies and the renewable energy components have already been factored in these policies. The

Central Africa Republic refers its vision for becoming an emerging economy by 2030 and the renewable

energy target included in its INDC to develop 312 MW through hydroelectricity is supported by its National

Energy Policy paper.

Africa Renewable Energy Initiative

Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI) is a transformative, Africa-owned and Africa-led inclusive effort

to accelerate and scale up the harnessing of the continent’s huge renewable energy potential. Under the

mandate of the African Union, and endorsed by African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change

(CAHOSCC), the Initiative is set to achieve at least 10 GW of new and additional renewable energy

generation capacity by 2020, and mobilise the African potential to generate at least 300 GW by 2030.The

AREI is firmly anchored in the context of sustainable development and climate change. It shows how low to

zero carbon development strategies can be achieved in African countries through climate finance and means

of implementation according to the principles of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

(UNFCCC). It recognises the critical importance of rapid expansion of energy access for enhanced well-

being, economic development and the fulfilment of all Sustainable Development Goals.

While there is reference to the different policies and strategies, the targets and goals presented relating to

renewable energy provision, are not defined against a scenario of the energy and development pathway of

the countries for the said implementation period stipulated. As such, it makes it difficult to ascertain the

extent to which the INDCs could transform the energy sector and facilitate the overall transition to a low

carbon future.

In some of the INDCs, renewable energy is presented as a measure to achieve not only mitigation objectives,

but also adaptation objectives, often against the backdrop of the contribution to overall development goals.

2. Renewable energy finance and project development

The Paris agreement calls for scaled-up finance to support the implementation of INDCs recognising the

numerous sources, channels and instruments available to mobilise finance. However, unlocking

transformative financing that maximises the benefits of a fully-exploited renewable energy potential in

Africa will require decision-makers to put in place appropriate market signals with commensurate

incentives, policies and regulations on one hand. In that sense, institutional design will be crucial in scaling

up renewable energy investments. Similarly, the private sector could play a substantial role in providing

the required funding.

A closer look at the INDCs first distilled the need to improve understanding on opportunities at hand and

the concrete role institutional design can play in supporting increased investments into renewables.

Several participants noted the existence of obstacles relating to developing bankable activities, and

matching the available finance to the specific needs despite the availability of finance.

Almost all the INDCs contain information on financial and investment needs classified in two categories:

the needs that can be sourced domestically (unconditional) and others that will require international support

including climate finance and the carbon market (conditional). With varying degree of specification, some

countries present specific figures of investments needed, while others indicate that support will be needed

without any specific indication of the scale. Furthermore, the extent to which the conditional/unconditional

support would pertain to the renewable energy aspects of INDCs remains unclear, making it important to

understand opportunities to scale up renewable energy investment. For instance, Rwanda indicates that the

implementation of the INDC will require USD 24.1 billion for water, energy and agriculture with support

“in the form of finance, capacity building and technology transfer” while Mali indicates the share of finance

that will come from domestic sources (approximately 12%) and the one from international sources

(approximately 88%) to fulfil the mitigation and adaptation actions listed in the INDC. Uganda provides an

estimation of investment needs to realise the renewable energy objective of its INDC. Rwanda indicates

that the implementation of its INDC will require USD 24.15 billion, in addition to capacity building and

technology transfer, without detailing the domestic and the international contribution.

In that regard, national representatives raised a number of challenges to be addressed if the renewable

energy objectives included in INDCs are to be realised. These include, for example, the absence of

feasibility studies for resource potential to prove the achievable capacity, limited capacities to install and

maintain renewable energy systems, limitations of current grid systems to absorb renewables and limited

ability to exploit available funding for project development. Overcoming these challenges could help clarify

finance needs to achieve INDCs and their renewable energy component.

2.1. Mobilising domestic resources through public and private sector engagement

Mobilising investments from the private sector is essential to scale up investments in renewable energy

given the limited public resources. Public sector instruments can address high perceived risk, limited access

to capital and limited financial viability across all phases of a project.

From the private sector’s perspective, commercial viability, in addition to enabling environments to be

placed by the public sector, will be central in realising existing investment and financing opportunities.

Today, different financial instruments aimed at curbing risks related to projects’ commercial viability across

the phases of project development exist to promote renewable energy investments in Africa.

The effective involvement of domestic finance institutions, banking institutions and funds will be also be

necessary to contribute to the increase and access to targeted domestic public and private investments

responding to development needs in the continent.

2.2. Mobilising international resources using market mechanisms and carbon pricing

While Africa’s contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is almost negligible (3.8%), its economic

growth is significant, if not the fastest in the world. In this vein, GHG avoidance and the role of carbon

market may benefit the renewable energy market as Africa’s contribution to GHG emissions grows and

financing options for these assets in the long-run could increase the uptake of renewables to fuel its growth

The figure below illustrates the potential interaction between climate finance and other sources of finance

to further leverage and support investments in renewable energy.

Figure 2 - Leveraging Climate Financing for Renewables. Source: Baker & McKenzie, 2016

Participants noted that climate finance could be used to leverage other sources of capital. They also noted

that while the carbon market and carbon pricing could have potential for Africa, the complexity of the CDM

market posed challenges for many developing countries, and in particular Africa. They stressed that any

future market based mechanism would need to be streamlined to minimise the complexity. Governments

would need to build the infrastructure to support policies that drive market development. The private sector

will be key in driving the re-launching of the carbon market because they respond to markets and price

signals.

While pricing carbon in Africa may not be that difficult, countries are in different development phases and

carbon taxes may not work for all in support of development. South Africa and Egypt have already

established a carbon price through the establishment of a carbon tax.

There was a general view that carbon pricing mechanisms, including markets will need to be combined

with development imperatives. Indeed, while African governments did not have the same capacity as large

emitters in the past, the rapid economic growth will see the emissions grow significantly in the coming

years unless investments are made in clean energy technologies. But given the low emissions levels in

Africa, it may be worth considering how to build the asset on the premise of avoided GHG emissions so as

to incentivise low carbon investments.

It was deemed important by African nations to use regional institutions to evaluate and assess the possibility

of implementing regulations for industries and potentially accelerate sustainable development in Africa.

This can involve testing market-based initiatives to experiment at the regional level, such as the setting of

a regional carbon tax for large point sources or heavy polluting industries. This can send a clear signal to

the private sector and put Africa on a low carbon development pathway. There was agreement that if the

carbon market or mechanisms presently under consideration in the context of the global climate discourse

were to benefit Africa, African countries’ should engage actively in determining how they can be designed

to ensure their relevance and applicability in the African context.

2.3. The importance of quality data and information for project development

Beyond instruments, the exchange of information and data provides an important incentive for investment

enhancing the “more finance” and the “better finance” arguments (Brookings Institute, 2015).

The IRENA Sustainable Energy Marketplace (http://marketplace.irena.org/) aims to contribute to such

efforts to facilitate the match-making between financiers and project developers. The Marketplace is a

virtual platform committed to enhancing the development, bankability and financing of renewable energy

projects and scaling up investments in renewable energy projects. Direct support to promising projects and

active facilitation will ensure the development of renewable energy market. In Africa, 39 projects have been

identified through the platform, with 497 MW of combined capacity (power generation projects only) worth

USD 1 billion.

The platform provides access to tools aiming to help enhance project development such as the Global Atlas

for Renewable Energy with information on resource potential of renewable energy sources in the world and

the IRENA Project Navigator, a guide for project developers to formulate proposals of bankable projects

to funding institutions.

3. The way forward: from INDCs to NDCs

The deliberations at the expert meetings highlighted the important role renewable energy enhancement will

play in climate change strategies across the continent. In moving forward with the further elaborations and

revisions of INDCs in line with the requirements of the Paris agreement, several issues will need to be taken

into consideration.

For many African countries, the process of preparing the INDCs was challenging in that there was little in

the way of guidance from the international process for what should be included. The limited time to prepare

them meant that many countries sought external assistance to write the documents, which in some cases

contributed to limited buy-in by all relevant actors in governments, and in some cases inconsistencies with

existing plans and strategies. The process to further refine and elaborate on the INDCs before submitting

them as NDCs however provide opportunities to the countries to strengthen cross-sectoral collaboration,

policy coherence and undertake technical studies on opportunities for RE development.

Yet, clarity on the process of revising and re-submitting INDCs will be crucial moving forward, a view that

the majority of participants shared. This involves both the procedural aspects that pertains to the

requirements of the Paris agreement, but also to substantive aspects relating to the technical work that will

be needed to further refine the elements therein.

When operationalising NDCs provisions in the energy sector, there are a number of questions the energy

sector needs to understand. Countries will need to assess what the appropriate energy mix will be in their

countries over time and what plans are needed to do this. The process of reviewing INDCs offers African

nations a chance to refine their low-emission strategies while addressing development and climate issues

in synergy, in light of the continent’s fast-growing economic surge and the great potential for renewable

energy.

There is a need to start translating the actions and measures in the INDCs into concrete programmes for

implementation. Some participants suggested consideration of pilot projects that could be submitted to

different climate funds, including the Green Climate Fund for support.

Initial steps in developing an implementation plan for the RE elements of the INDCs could include the

following:

Outline the plan for the renewable energy component over the next five years

Identify what the policy instruments of choice would be to realise that plan

Identify the gaps in the legal and regulatory system

Identify the financial instruments and products that would be used to support the implementation

of the plan

The question of coordination and coherence between and across all relevant sectors was underscored. In

many cases, the process of developing INDCs has been led by ministries of environment. Even in cases

where there were stakeholder consultations, the process was not comprehensive enough to get a national

ownership of the measure and process moving forward. There was a general view that the further

elaboration of the INDC must be nested and take their departure point from the development targets of a

country.

Several participants underscored the fact that climate change alone will not determine the choices made in

the energy sector. Energy policies are determined by a range of issues ranging from energy security, to

access and affordability. They cautioned that limiting the argument to drive renewable to climate change

alone would be unrealistic and the discussions on the climate objectives should be supportive of

development considerations and as such mainstreamed into existing processes. Almost all of the African

Box 2 – UMEME: a five stage process towards implementation, IRENA 2016

countries had committed to the Sustainable Energy for All process and have defined or are currently

defining action agendas. Coordination with the relevant authorities and ministries is of crucial importance

to ensure that all sectors can act in accordance with the existing plans and build upon them

The issue of capacity development was highlighted. Many highlighted and expressed interest in

collaborating with regional centres in light of their role to build relevant capacities in their respective

countries and ultimately avoid reliance on short-term external experts.

Lastly, cooperation and sharing of experiences between countries to facilitate joint learning was highlighted

as a very useful input to help inspire countries on what could be possible. It would also contribute to building

stronger networks between relevant public sector entities and experts in the immediate region.

Towards Implementation of the RE elements of the INDCs

The steps that counties could take as they move towards implementation of the INDCs and

development of investment plans were discussed in the expert meetings. The results of the

discussions and further analysis and consultation are being documented in a handbook that IRENA

is preparing and due for release online in July 2016. This handbook, “UMEME: A five stage

process towards implementation on NDCs” outlines aims at providing a high-level structure for

planning, technical assessment and consultation process to translate RE aspects of INDCs into

implementation plans and identifies relevant resources, tools and climate and other finance to

support each of the 5 different stages of the process. As such it could also serve to inform and

structure capacity development support.

4. Conclusion and suggested recommendations

(1) Owning national action on climate provides an opportunity to facilitate INDC

implementation

Climate change action is an opportunity for development in developing countries especially African

countries. The preparation of INDCs provided an unprecedented opportunity for nations to strengthen inter-

sectoral cooperation at the national level. Yet, most of the INDCs being developed by external consultants,

it is important and urgent that countries take the necessary measures to ensure better ownership of INDCs

and thus facilitate their implementation. IRENA and its partners could support countries in strengthening

internal capacities to achieve this goal.

(2) Multi-stakeholder engagement and commitment to align and achieve development goals

Effective engagement of all stakeholders at national level, particularly the departments in charge of

development, responsible for mobilizing financial resources (both domestic and foreign) will ensure

objectives included in INDCs are aligned with the countries’ development priorities and therefore

successfully realized. A lack of multi-stakeholder engagement reinforces already-existing financing

barriers for renewable energy deployment in the power sector. Indeed, investment mobilisation and access

present key obstacles to overcome in order to achieve pledges included in INDCs given their contingency

upon financial support.

(3) Inter-sectorial coordination

In order to promote the rapid deployment of renewable energy for addressing the access issue and move

towards a low carbon development, it is important to promote a better coordination of energy related

initiatives at national, regional and international levels in Africa. In that regard, there is a need to better

understand national priorities, to promote inter-sectorial coordination, and policy-makers commitment for

accessing to various bi/multilateral funding. In that regard, INDCs can serve as national document

encompassing sectorial plans, in tight internal cooperation at the national level.

(4) Involvement of the private and financial sectors for a rapid deployment of renewables

Engagement with the private and financial sectors is crucial to enhance strategies for the development of

renewable energy as key drivers for growth. Policies to support investments are more favorable to those in

the public sector and do not always promote private sector investment in a manner that can stimulate

economic growth. The adoption of regionally-integrated communications plan as a prerequisite for an

effective implementation of INDCs and the improvement of the governance framework (policy, legal,

regulatory and institutional) at national level are crucial steps for the promotion of renewables in Africa.

(5) External support for enhanced mobilization of resources and understanding of new, potential

financing opportunities

International institutions such as IRENA should and could support countries in Africa in cooperation with

ECCAS through human and institutional capacity building activities, and facilitate access to information

and knowledge for a better mobilization of financial resources. This can be strengthened through the

establishment of platforms for exchange between countries. Furthermore, African countries should strive

to engage in any new market instruments such as the carbon market that may emerge in the context of the

Paris Agreement as a potential source for renewable energy financing.

Among the suggested recommendations coming out of the experts meetings were:

For the regional and international organisations to consider to support countries to translate the

NDCs into implementation and investment plans, including possibly supporting pilot projects

in two or three countries, which could serve as examples to other countries to learn from

Development and investment partners should engage in regional experts meeting to enable a

discussion on opportunities for support

To encourage regional financial organisations and other financial institutions to consider the

possibility of establishing an ESCO fund for guarantees to facilitate private developers’ access to

the required funding. The fund can be sourced from developed countries. In the case of Central

Africa, the accelerated the operationalization of the Green Economy Fund in Central Africa

(GEFCA) has been deemed crucial for its accreditation with different mechanisms and/or

international financial tools related to green finance as well as for its recognition by partners (both

technical and financial) for an effective fund raising. To support information sharing on available

funding for renewable energy, a database or a repertoire on donors and funding mechanisms for

Africa could be developed.

To continue the dialogue initiated through the expert meetings and enable further sharing of

information and experiences between countries, organisations and experts to strengthen the

collaboration and partnerships that could support the implementation of RE actions.

5. Annex

5.1. Agenda

Agenda of Regional Expert Meeting on West Africa

Agenda of Regional Expert Meeting on East and Southern Africa

Agenda of Regional Expert Meeting on Central Africa

5.2. List of Participants

Participants at Regional Expert Meeting on West Africa

Participants at Regional Expert Meeting on East and Southern Africa

Participants at Regional Expert Meeting on Central Africa

5.3. Presentations