Can the First Ever UN General Assembly Sustainability Week Act to Brighten Up Progress on Access to Affordable, Reliable, Sustainable and Modern Energy For All?

 

                                              

Today, we enter the last day for the first ever United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Sustainability Week (15 – 19 April 2024) – yet another global gathering, which has brought together global leaders to discuss and debate five critical topics on this year’s General Assembly agenda, in the context of sustainable development: debt sustainability, sustainable tourism, sustainable transport, infrastructure connectivity, and sustainable energy.

What legacy does it leave behind with respect to access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all?

The SDG Summit 2023 that took place on 18-19 September 2023 in New York was clear that world remains woefully off track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, with development challenges compounded by COVID-19, armed conflict, geopolitical tensions, humanitarian crises, and the triple planetary crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.

Similarly, the Special Edition of the Sustainable Development Goals Report 2023 warns that while lack of progress is universal, it is the world’s poorest and most vulnerable who are experiencing the worst effects of these unprecedented global challenges. It also points out areas that need urgent action to rescue the SDGs and deliver meaningful progress for people and the planet by 2030.

It is a hard fact that in 2023 - the mid-point of the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the picture on progress since the adoption of the Agenda in 2015 is mixed. SDG target 7.1 on ensuring universal access to affordable, reliable, and modern energy services is off track, with an estimated 675 million people still without access to electricity and 2.3 billion without access to clean cooking in 2021. Current trends suggest that the world’s shot on the target will fall very wide of the mark in 2030.

Furthermore, The SDG 2023 Report notes that International public financial flows for clean energy in developing countries have declined consistently, even before COVID-19.

At the launch of the African Women Clean Cooking Support Programme (AWCCSP) on the sidelines of COP28 in Dubai last year, the President of the United Republic of Tanzania Samia Suluhu Hassan said 80% of households in sub-Saharan Africa rely on wooden biomass for cooking. She said, “Women and girls are disproportionately affected when there is no access to clean cooking solutions. Exposure to toxic fumes affects their health and well-being,” and that the programme will ensure the long hours they spend fetching firewood, are spent on productive economic activities.

President Suluhu said cooking with wooden biomass accelerates deforestation. “This has led to the loss of 3.9 million hectares of forest between 2010 and 2020 in Africa,” she said and pointed out that while access to clean cooking had increased across the world, in Africa it is the use of wooden biomass that is growing.

At this event, Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina,  President of the African Development Bank said, “300,000 women and 300,000 children die every year due to respiratory diseases because of simply trying to cook a meal—what is taken for granted in developed economies.” Adesina said the global economic cost of women’s hours spent fetching firewood is estimated at $800 billion annually and the health cost for that is estimated at $1.4 trillion annually. “The risk of women dying from a lack of clean cooking solutions is three times higher than the risk of dying from malaria.”

It is therefore important that the first ever UNGA Sustainability Week goes an extra mile to brighten the future for the thousands of women and children who are currently victims of lack of clean cooking solutions. Scaling up diffusion of clean cooking solutions and options is something that should have been done yesterday – but calls for increased finance and other means of presentation.

As we noted at International Day of Clean Energy, it is also important to pursue and speed up inclusive clean energy solutions where there glaring gaps exist, for example in sub-saharan Africa. 

It is correspondingly important to note that there are inherent dividends in having a sharp progress towards SDG 7, as it is inextricably linked to other SDGs, including poverty eradication, food security, health, education, prosperity, gender equality, employment, transport, ocean, clean water and sanitation, as well as gender equality and the empowerment of women, youth and children. 

EU Deforestation Regulation Raises Anxiety Amongst East African Small holder Coffee Farmers

The EU's new deforestation regulation (EUDR) seeks to ensure that seven commodity products—soy, beef, palm oil, wood, cocoa, coffee and rubber, all of which are major drivers of deforestation—will no longer be sold in the EU if sourced from areas affected by deforestation or forest degradation practices. Operators and large traders will need to demonstrate origin, including geo coordinates in an auditable manner, to prove the product/commodity is deforestation free.

A key area of contention is how the EUDR will be implemented. As part of this regulation, the European Commission will create a three-tier benchmarking system to categorize commodity-producing countries and regions as low, standard, or high risk. The system will allow regulators to focus checks on products from high-risk countries, and allow operators to conduct simplified due diligence for products from low-risk countries. ‘However, it seems that the EU is oblivious to the potential consequences of these labels on the affected countries’ reputations. Many are concerned about being categorized as “high-risk”, which could discourage importers from buying coffee.’ notes Coffee Intelligence.

‘The need to prepare for the imminent enforcement of the EUDR and to demonstrate that the provenance of coffee from small scale farmers in East Africa is deforestation-free, is going to be taxing for coffee supply chain actors before entering the EU’, notes Kimbowa Richard, Chairman of INFORSE East Africa. In the meantime, climate change impacts that are pushing coffee farmers into fragile and in ‘more productive’ farmlands in coffee growing areas have been documented for both Robusta and Arabica coffee species. So, how will implementation of the EUDR be, given the structural bottlenecks and historical factors related to absence of property rights for many remote areas where small holder poor farmers are located, given that satellite imagery will need to be supplemented with field realities? How will climate change and the insatiable demand for fuel wood be factored in? How far are the coffee exporting countries ready in terms of facilitating provision of data, to be in line with the EUDR requirements for the coffee supply chain? To what extent are their agricultural extension set ups up to speed to support farmers, exporters and cooperatives to comply with the EUDR?

The stringent requirement of this legislation is of particular concern. For instance, aerial or satellite photography must be provided for every parcel of land used for coffee production. These images must demonstrate no deforestation has taken place and need to be submitted with each trade – or else the entire container can be rejected. In effect, many exporters feel the practicalities of mapping small farms and digitizing farm biodata to enhance sustainable coffee traceability to secure supply of accurate data on an ongoing basis as required under the law, will be very complex and quite costly.

Read the full article from the East African Suswatch INFORSE East Africa E bulletin (February 2024) from here

The Colossal Power of the Century-Old Radio to Promote Sustainability Remains High in Uganda

It is very common for folks in the countryside to tune in their mobile radio sets on phones to listen to their favourite radio news bulletins, talk shows, music and other programmes. It is not unusual to have people call in to interface with talk show hosts on issues of health, economics, politics, fashion, education among others. Therefore, radio remains a key platform for communication and development even if social media has made a huge bang in media relations

On the occasion of World Radio Day 2024, Ms Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, notes that, “Since its creation at the end of the nineteenth century, radio has always been with us, bringing us together around powerful moments and shared emotions. And so, for over a century, it has been informing us, entertaining us, and also educating us, as this year's theme underlines”. The theme of the World Radio Day 2024 is ‘A century informing, entertaining and educating’ reflecting the 100-year-plus milestone of Radio on this planet.

According to the East African Radio Service, each and every day, Ugandans choose one of almost 300 Radios for information, news, announcements, and entertainment. Over 30 million Ugandans tune in regularly, making Radio the most frequently used medium in the country.

Even in the face of the COVID-19 crisis that emerged in late 2019 radio stations played a significant role in keeping communities informed worldwide. For example, radio stations in Uganda and Zambia remained on-air with full programming, though in some cases with scaled-down staff due to curfews. All were broadcasting special shows and public health messages to help combat the virus, while sharing messages of hope for victims

Indeed UNESCO has noted that, 'the on-going utilitarian value of Radio as a relatively free and portable public safety net during emergencies and power outages brought on by natural and human-made disasters such as storms, earthquakes, floods, heat, wildfires, accidents and warfare'.

Uganda still faces environmental problems that call for sensitization campaigns and sustained information updates to the general public. For example, the dangers of single user plastics are appreciated and remain a major discussion issue in public domain. Air quality, water pollution and the rising cost of firewood and charcoal are of concern to many in Uganda and radio stations have been vanguards in providing spaces for the public to share their experiences and perspectives on them. Similarly, weather updates and alerts can still reach the public more effectively through radio than any other media.

Perhaps, this year’s World Radio Day should entice all, to further make full use of the potential of radio in raising awareness, educating, entertaining the public. In doing so, creativity is necessary so as to scale up behaviours that uphold sustainability from individual to community and global levels. This comes in the face of concerning global picture of the SDG progress at the midpoint, where 37% of the SDG targets in stagnation or regression stage

World Food Day 2023: A Coordinated and Interlinked Approach to decision-making key to ensure that Water is Life and is Food for All.

The theme of the 2023 World Food Day is Water is life, water is food. Leave no one behind. Water is essential to life on Earth. It covers the majority of the Earth's surface, makes up over 50% of our bodies, produces our food, and supports livelihoods. But this precious resource is not infinite and we need to stop taking it for granted. What we eat, and how that food is produced all affect water. This means it is time to start managing water wisely

The 2023 World Food Day theme is very important to reflect on given the recent report from the Stockholm Resilience Centre that has warned that, ‘we are in six out of nine vital life support systems, we have blown well past the safe zone. And we’re now in the danger zone, where we – as well as every other species – are now at risk’.

The planetary boundaries concept presents a set of nine planetary boundaries within which humanity can continue to develop and thrive for generations to come. Crossing boundaries increases the risk of generating large-scale abrupt or irreversible environmental changes. Drastic changes will not necessarily happen overnight, but together the boundaries mark a critical threshold for increasing risks to people and the ecosystems we are part of. 

The Planetary boundaries 2023  (Source: Helene Karlsson)

 

Boundaries are interrelated processes within the complex biophysical Earth system. This means that a global focus on climate change alone is not sufficient for increased sustainability. Instead, understanding the interplay of boundaries, especially climate, and loss of biodiversity, is key in science and practice.

In 2011, the Bonn2011 Conference: The Water, Energy and Food Security Nexus – Solutions for a Green Economy noted that achieving water, energy and food security, and consequently reducing hunger and eradicating poverty, is a central future challenge that is possible even under difficult and challenging global economic conditions.

One of the policy recommendations from this Conference, ‘to have a coordinated and interlinked approach to decision-making’ ties in well with the 2023 theme of the World Food Day. This will ensure achievement of water, energy and food security, optimum use of natural resources, effective demand management and efficient use of increasingly limited financial resources.

This looks at creating synergies both horizontally across the three sectors and the broader policy environment including climate change and urban development, and vertically between international, regional, national and local levels. Similarly it embraces the principles of the Green Economy in decoupling growth from resource depletion.

Achieving mutually beneficial approaches, multiple benefits and fewer unintended consequences requires political commitment and coherent policies to ensure that development pathways explicitly account for the inter-dependency between water, energy and food.

Energy provision and food supply options utilize water and land to varying extents and similarly water supply requires energy at differing scales and intensities. In prioritizing water, energy and food security and its contribution to poverty reduction, any trade-offs between alternative choices on resource utilization, technology, regulatory frameworks, incentive structures, fiscal and trade policy should be made on the basis of an integrated ‘nexus assessment, review and strategy.’

It would provide an open and full understanding of the implications of one choice on the other options as well as consequent requirements placed on natural resources and the risks of degradation. Multiple benefits and efficiency gains can be achieved by looking beyond single issue approaches.

In addition, cooperative structures and procedural mechanisms for implementation of a more interlinked ‘nexus’ perspective at international, national and local levels should be encouraged.

The objectives of greater interlinkage in policy formulation, planning, management and monitoring processes can be achieved by targeted cooperation, cross-sectoral relations, improved procedures and regulatory measures while concentrating on the fundamental need to improve sector performance.

Within sectors, financial incentives are required for innovation and replicating successful initiatives. Cooperation is needed at the national level through strategic planning and functional linkages to coordinate sectoral ministries and other stakeholders including civil society; in business through strengthened incentives, public-private partnerships and improved corporate responsibility programs; at the local level in ensuring access to basic services; and at the international level, for example through more effective coordination in implementing existing multilateral environment agreements and Green Economy considerations.

Similarly greater cooperation applies in formulating strategies to enhance resilience to natural disasters and improve adaptive capacities.

Water Hyacinth, Nile Perch and other Invasive Species driving Global Plant & Animal Extinctions

Scientists have released a damning report warning that environmental chaos sown by invasive species, whose spread around the world has seen economic damages quadruple every decade since 1970. Climate change in form of warmer temperatures are expected to further drive the expansion of invasive species.

The team of 86 researchers from 49 countries released a four-year assessment of the global impacts of some 3,500 harmful invasive species, with a key finding that economic costs now total at least $423 billion every year, with the alien invaders playing a key role in 60% of recorded plant and animal extinctions.

Worse still, ecologist Helen Roy co-chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) report quoted by Reuters says, "We also know this is a problem that is going to get much, much worse,"

In East Africa a mention of invasive species quickly brings to many the grim reality faced by the shared Lake Victoria, as the water hyacinth remains a huge ecological disaster of our times, not to mention the Nile perch introduced in the 1950's, that is now responsible for the sudden population decline of many other fish species and extinction of hundreds of others.

However, all this has been further fueled by human-induced pollution, the uncontrolled urban population sprawl (population estimated to be more than 30 million) and the sporadic effects of climate change in the Lake Victoria region.

JEEP to spearhead dialogues on the 'Transition to Energy Saving Solutions (TESS)' in Uganda September 28-30, 2023

Yesterday (7/8/2023), on behalf of Uganda Coalition for Sustainable Development participated in a media briefing on ‘Transition to Energy Saving Solutions (TESS)’, a three-day expo scheduled to take place 28 -30 September 2023. This upcoming event is organised by Joint Energy and Environment Projects (JEEP), who sum it as a ,’convergence for energy talk, moment to experience energy in action, as an occasion to make energy choices for homes and business and an opportunity to advocate for sustainable energy for environmental protection and climate change adaptation’

TESS comes at a time when #Uganda is struggling with an unsustainable #biomass use whose fast growing population, with over 90% demanding fuel wood to cook, is a threaten to landscapes and biodiversity across the country (having lost almost 50% of the forest cover since 1990).

The over-reliance on biomass as a main form of energy for cooking comes with environmental degradation and its concomitant impacts related to health, gender and household expenditure (GIZ, 2014). According to the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), 2.6% of Uganda’s #forests are cut down annually for #firewood, #charcoal, #agriculture, and to make way for population growth. If this trend persists, Uganda will lose all its forest cover in less than 25 years (NEMA, 2020).

The recent Executive order that bans logging for commercial charcoal production Northern and North Eastern Uganda, responding to the above threat has brought to the fore a future scenario that Uganda needs to plan for in terms of tangible options and alternatives to charcoal, firewood and other biomass as the main energy sources.

In this media brief, I emphasized the importance of providing choices amidst these challenges, where the price of charcoal has doubled in Kampala as a result of the above ban. I also noted that tried and tested local solutions (for example the 80+ local solutions documented in the Catalogue of Local Sustainable Solutions-East Africa, 2023 that are available online) should be scaled up without further delay, as an immediate response to get people to switch to energy efficient modes, but also alternatives

TESS will therefore be a timely moment for individuals, households, businesses, policy and decision-makers to listen, reflect and act on the future of the country’s energy and energy 'mix' – towards 100%
#renewables and #cleancooking for the majority.

 

Opinion: Uganda Needs to Reverse Harm on Wetlands and Decode The Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Agreement into National Plans

Wetlands ecological services contribute $47.4 trillion annually to human health, happiness, and security according to UNEP. The World Wetlands Day will be commemorated on 2 February 2023 on the theme “It’s Time for Wetlands Restoration,” which highlights the urgent need to prioritize wetland restoration.

At the 14th Conference of Parties to the Ramsar Wetlands Convention, while the importance of people-centric wetland management approaches was agreed, the lack of financial incentives and sustainable business models was identified as a main constraint for community motivation in the wise-use of wetlands. The Secretary General’s report showed low progress in projects that contribute to poverty alleviation, indicating that current wetland conservation programs do not adequately address livelihood development.

In Uganda and in many parts of East Africa, the tension between conservation and development remains as communities, private entities and even Local Governments seek to expand land holdings for housing industry and agriculture.

This year’s World Wetlands Day theme that calls out for wetlands restoration is spot on and is a clarion call for double efforts to reverse the loss of wetlands building on the Kunming-Montreal Agreement adopted by 196 countries under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, committing the world to halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. Specifically, there was an agreement on inclusion of inland waters and coastal ecosystems in the targets on restoration and conservation of 30% of the planet by 2030.

As Uganda and other Parties to the Ramsar Convention translate this landmark agreement into national plans and turn their attention to implementation, and as the global community prepares for the UN Water Summit, scaling up wetland restoration and conservation must take centre stage.

Uganda’s other task now is to protectively guard against any further loss of wetland acreage and to find ways and means of getting communities and people dependent on / living in close proximity to these vital resources to gradually take up alternative options.

 

Above all, full implementation of the decision to cancel illegal land titles located in critical urban wetlands is overdue