At the COP22 climate conference in Marrakech, Morocco, United for Efficiency organized a side event “Energy-Efficient Lighting for Africa and Beyond” on 16 November. The event, organized in collaboration with the Clean Energy Ministerial, raised awareness about the savings possible from light-emitting diodes (LED lighting) in Africa.
The event highlighted the potential societal, health and economic benefits of energy-efficient on-grid and off-grid lighting for African countries. According to the United for Efficiency, LED lighting could save Africa electricity equivalent to 30 large power plants and save consumers U.S. $ 5 billion in reduced electricity bills.
“The United for Efficiency initiative is strong proof that coordinated collaboration between countries, international organizations and the private sector can accelerate sustainable development,” said Stéphane Himber, Director Governmental Affairs of OSRAM.
Harry Verhaar, Head of Philips Lighting Global Public & Government Affairs, explained how, as part of the initiative, an integrated policy approach for countries to transition to energy-efficient lighting had been developed. “These policy recommendations have been updated, providing countries with guidance on how to best scale up energy-efficient lighting, and they will be published next month in a Lighting Policy Guide,” Verhaar said.
As part of the event, the Clean Energy Ministerial “Global Lighting Challenge” was presented. African countries, business and initiatives were invited to join its race to deploy 10 billion high-efficiency, high-quality and affordable lighting products (such as LED bulbs). The Global Lighting Challenge was launched December 2015 in Paris at COP21.
In addition, a partnership agreement between the United for Efficiency-UN Environment and Energy Efficiency Services Limited of India was announced. This collaboration will help United for Efficiency partner countries learn from the Indian experience of a large scale-up of LED lighting through bulk procurement, financial mechanisms and consumer campaigns.
United for Efficiency works with a group of private and technical institutions and governments in over 50 countries around the world. It promotes energy-efficient products and the establishment of an integrated policy approach, including energy-efficiency standards and financial mechanisms, which accelerate market penetration.