Biofuels technologies: Potential for South-South cooperation

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Biofuels technologies Potential for South-South
cooperation
High-level seminar on interregional cooperation
Abdoulie Janneh, UN Under-Secretary-General and
Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission
for Africa
Santiago, Chile 8 June 2007
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• Recent initiatives in South-South cooperation
• Energy supply a challenge to be addressed to
  achieve the MDGs
• Biofuels technologies and South-South cooperation
  initiatives
• Strengthening interregional cooperation
• Role for the Regional Commissions

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• Many successful examples
• Africa Latin America
• Africa-South America Summit
• Africa Brazil/Cuba Vaccine
• Africa Cuba Medical schools
• Africa Asia
• China-Africa Cooperation Forum
• India-Africa Fund
• Advantages
• Similarities development contexts, cultural and
  historical paths
• Mutual respect and cooperation without
  conditionalities
• Addresses capacity-building and financing needs

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• Africa accounts for 12 of worlds oil supply,
  but only about 3.5 of worlds petroleum
  consumption
• Heavy reliance on traditional biomass fuels
• Wood, charcoal, straw, agricultural residues and
  dung
• In Africa, biomass fuels represent 90 of total
  primary energy consumed

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• Energy and economic development
• Adequate energy supply necessary for accelerated
  economic growth and sustained poverty reduction
• Strong and positive correlation between per
  capita GDP and energy consumption
• If poorer countries are to meet the MDGs, and
  NEPAD priorities in Africa, the energy challenge
  must be addressed

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• Modern biomass-derived fuels
• Gaseous fuels (biogas)
• Liquid fuels (ethanol and biodiesel)
• Why a renewed interest
• Increasing demand for energy
• High and volatile oil prices
• Environmental concerns
• Availability of new technologies

Reasons for investing in biofuels
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• Limited access to information on
  options/opportunities
• High capital cost and lack of access to finance
• Need for
• Promoting effective use of these technologies
• Involving small-scale farmers in production
• Strengthening technical capacity to operate and
  maintain these technologies
• Developing conducive policy, legal and regulatory
  frameworks
• Developing local markets for biofuels

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Challenges of biofuels technologies in Africa
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• National level
• Senegal will launch a biofuel programme in 2007
  in cooperation with Brazil and India
• Sub-regional level
• Government of India to promote biofuels in West
  Africa region through ECOWAS Bank for Investment
  and Development (EBID)
• Regional level
• Africa South America Summit (2006)
• AU/Brazil/UNIDO to develop a roadmap for biofuels
  development in Africa
• ECA could develop policies strategies on
  biofuels development in Africa

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• Policy analysis and advocacy
• Assessment of biofuels development
• Scenario building and risk analysis
• Monitoring the implementation of the Africa-South
  America Summit Outcome
• Consensus building
• Interregional seminars/workshops
• High-level meetings
• Facilitating engagement with G-8 and other blocks
• Technical assistance
• Contributing to elaborating continent-wide
  strategies
• Enhancing capacity to set up policy, legal and
  regulatory frameworks

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• Better use and focus of Development Account
  projects
• ECA proposal for the 6th tranche Innovative
  financing mechanisms for new and renewable energy
  projects
• Promote fora for exchanges between the private
  sector of leading countries in biofuel technology
  development and counterparts in Africa

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How to scale up cooperation
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