H.E. Amani Abou-Zeid, Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy joined top-level leaders for a closed-door “COP26 Energy Efficiency Champions Call”, hosted by the UK Government, and supported by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The webinar presented an opportunity to discuss energy efficiency in the context of the UK’s COP26 Presidency, as well as in regards to its role in green stimulus. The meeting also focused in on-product efficiency, particularly in relation to action the UK plans to take through the SEAD (Super-efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment) initiative for COP26.

The Rt.  Hon. Kwasi Kwarteng, UK Minister of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and Dr Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the IEA chaired the meeting. High level representatives from Governments, industry, international organisations, as well as non-state organisations attended the meeting.

In her remarks, H.E. Dr Amani Abou-Zeid said that “While we rightly focus on fighting the immediate crisis of COVID-19, we must not lose sight of the huge challenges of climate change. COP26 can act as a focus for ambitious alignment of recovery and climate action. It is the right time to raise the profile of the importance of energy efficiency, not only to overcome the lack of access and ensure energy security, but as a key driver for the

creation of new and sustainable jobs to replace those lost”.
She further highlighted that “A recent estimation on energy efficiency savings assessment for Africa conducted by the African Energy Commission (AFREC) suggested that, by 2030, Africa shall aim to save more than $7 Billion per year, avoiding the need to construct more than 50 new power plants, saving more than 50 Million tonnes of greenhouse gas and air pollution emissions per year. The electricity freed through more efficient lighting and appliances could supply more than 30 million homes in Africa”.

Commissioner Abou-Zeid also underscored the ongoing work led by the African Union Commission (AUC) and AFREC to drive ambitious energy efficiency programmes across Africa in order to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and energy demand, promote business innovation, and ensure access to affordable and sustainable energy for all Africans.

In her intervention, Dr Birol emphasized that “A range of regulatory, information and incentive policies have been successfully used around the world to raise the efficiency of energy-using products – including minimum energy performance standards (MEPS), labelling and incentives. By making products more energy efficient, these policies reduce emissions and energy bills. The COP26 provides leaders with an opportunity to take unified action to support global action to improve the energy efficiency of these products which, to date, has often been overlooked in the context of global action on climate change”.

The Rt. Hon Kwarteng noted that “The decisions we make today will either lay the foundations for sound, sustainable and inclusive growth, or lock-in polluting emissions for decades and in doing so, make our society more vulnerable. As COP Presidency the UK are committed to increasing climate ambition. We will uphold the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as crucial frameworks for guiding the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.”

He further stressed that the UK as COP26 President will support the IEA, as the coordinator of the SEAD initiative, and willing countries to:

1. Coordinate commitments from member countries on the setting of more ambitious energy efficiency policies for the highest energy-consuming products; 
2. Focus the scope of SEAD to track and monitor progress of member countries and to convene a facilitative dialogue to support the implementation of effective policies in the context of COVID-19 recovery and green stimulus; 
3. Expand the membership of SEAD; 
4. Lay the foundations for a group of countries seeking to work together to increase ambition for energy  efficiency policies across borders and accelerate the pace of change.

The meeting has concluded in a strong call to politically use the COP26 platform to support and amplify the profile and visibility of the importance of energy efficiency. It was also agreed to work closely together to accelerate the pace of the low carbon transition by facilitating coordination and consultation with the broader climate and energy communities to avoid lost opportunities, and drawing on the experience and global best practices.

For further media inquiries, please contact:
1.    Mrs. Esther Azaa Tankou | Head of Information Division | Directorate of Information and Communication, African Union Commission | Mobile: +251911361185 | E-mail: yamboue@africa-union.org
2.    Mr. Gamal Ahmed A. Karrar | Senior Communication Officer| Directorate of Information and Communication, African Union Commission | E-mail: GamalK@africa-union.org