UN regional commissions call for urgent, equitable, sustainable energy transition

As the 13th International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development concluded in Bangkok, five United Nations Regional Commissions issued a joint statement underscoring the urgent need for a just, sustainable and equitable global energy transition.

The statement emphasised a commitment to support UN member states in accelerating renewable energy deployment and improving energy efficiency, intending to triple global renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency improvement rates by 2030, helping member states meet both SDG 7 and Paris Agreement objectives, Xinhua news agency reported.

This year, the forum was themed 'Taking Action for Just Energy Transition', which underlined the urgency of moving from pledges to implementation.

It brought together government leaders, industry stakeholders and experts from across five UN regions -- Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and West Asia.

In an opening speech, Rola Dashti, under-secretary-general of the United Nations and executive secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, said that energy transition must be fair and inclusive, and women, the youth and underprivileged groups must be given priority for economic opportunities when policies are formulated.

Claver Gatete, under-secretary-general of the United Nations and executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa said via video link that promoting accelerated, just and inclusive energy transition has provided key opportunities for Africa, which helped create high-quality job opportunities and boosted economic growth on the continent.

Asia, as the engine of the global economy, is a crucial region for the world's energy transition, however, the continent's vast population and high carbon emissions pose significant challenges to this endeavour, China's special envoy for climate change Liu Zhenmin said.

Liu made three proposals to address energy transition issues, including structured transformation where Asian nations should undergo an orderly structural adjustment to build a new energy system centred on renewable energy sources.

He also suggested measures of combining pollution reduction with carbon mitigation, to facilitate coordinated governance, adding that efforts should be made to establish a collaborative platform for regional energy transition.