Access to energy key to reducing poverty: ADB official

from The Daily Times

Daily Times Monitor

NEW DELHI: Providing access to energy is a prerequisite for reducing poverty in the region, a senior ADB official told the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit Tuesday.

Lack of access to energy is severely affecting the productivity and health of the poor, said Bindu N Lohani, Director General of ADB’s Regional and Sustainable Development Department.

“Asian economies need to make large investments in energy conservation, energy efficiency, alternative energy sources, clean technology, and energy for the poor,” Mr Lohani told today’s panel at the summit on Energy for Sustainable Development.

More than 500 participants from governments, development agencies, and the private sector are attending the annual conference, which focuses on sharing experiences and promoting workable solutions to the region’s natural resource problems. A special theme this year is assessing progress on the UN Millennium Development Goals, focusing on the natural resource implications of sustainable development.

Mr. Lohani, who is also special advisor to the ADB president on Clean Energy and Environment, said there are five major issues that Asia must address in meeting its energy needs.

First, there is the need to promote energy conservation and efficiency in residential and industrial buildings and transport, given that residential consumption in non-OECD countries is projected to double by 2030. Also, with Asia’s motorized vehicle fleet doubling every five to seven years, well designed mass public transport systems will be needed in major cities. Although this will require substantial investment, the benefits will be large, including reduced oil consumption and pollution levels.

Second, countries need to adopt new technologies and invest in renewable energy. Trading credits under the Kyoto Protocol and donor support offer the chance to reduce the relative high costs of renewable energy. But the choice of technology adopted now is important as, for example, an average coal fired power plant is likely to last for about 50 years.

His third point was that with the first quarter of 2006 seeing carbon market transactions reaching $7.5 billion, work needs to be done to ensure that developing countries can benefit. The People’s Republic of China alone would generate carbon credits that would earn it up to $2.25 billion per year, which could fund extra generating capacity of 1,500 MW in wind power per year. “A clear policy on the use of coal is needed to lower carbon emissions effectively,” he said. “The global community should also look beyond the arrangement under the Kyoto Protocol to avoid investment risk perception.”

His fourth issue was that Asia must accelerate investment to increase poor people’s access to energy. “Meeting the minimum energy needs of the poor to enable them to share the benefits of economic growth is as important as a shift toward a low carbon economy,” he said.

And last, he said that Asia should integrate adaptation to climate change into its future planning and investment. “Climate change is already taking place, and many of its effects are already visible,” he said. “Hence, governments should take into consideration climate risk management strategies while planning for long-term investments.”

As a major multilateral development institution focused on poverty reduction and supporting sustainable growth in Asia and the Pacific, ADB is actively engaged in promoting environmental sustainability at local and regional levels.

ADB’s current Clean Energy and Environment Program comprises several initiatives, including the Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency and Climate Change (REACH) Program, Energy Efficiency Initiative, under which ADB’s investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy will be expanded to $1 billion per year, and the new Carbon Market Initiative.

In addition, ADB since last year has been setting up regional knowledge hubs to tap into the potential of vast yet largely unorganized knowledge and promote information exchange, sharing, and networking among regional institutes, government agencies, and academic institutions. .

The first such hub on clean energy was established in June 2006 at the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), organizer of DSDS, which runs from 22 to 24 January.