Commissioner Nielson's Speech on Energy for Africa

Honourable Ministers, Your Excellencies, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am glad to be here today, a little over a year after Johannesburg, to show my continued commitment to follow up on the WSSD statements of intention. My first time in Kenya was in 1980 attending a major conference on renewable energy as Danish Minister of Energy.

We are holding this meeting in Africa, for African countries, as the continent has much to gain in following the sustainable development path and should be encouraged to do so. These two days of discussion should provide the opportunity to move forward by identifying priority actions and expected results in the energy field.

Today I would like to start by re-emphasising the link between energy, poverty alleviation and development in general.

Currently, 90% of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa relies on traditional biomass to meet its residential energy needs. Nearly all rural households use wood for cooking. In addition to the well known environmental impact of these practices, it is expensive in terms of the time it takes, especially for women. Typical families spend 2-6 hours a day collecting 10 kg of wood over 4-8 km distances. Any improvement in the quality of energy and the efficiency of energy services, directly and structurally contributes to improve livelihoods by increasing available time for other economic activities. Deforestation, population growth, urban challenge, graduation process from fuel wood to electricity, LPG: it costs money. No quick fix. Only medium and long term solutions and they are all related to the fight against poverty.

I have to say that I am somehow disappointed by the tendency that there is among the so-called "experts" to shift the debate from the issue of "what we can do to improve access to energy" to the issue of "which technology is the best one". I think that valuable resources are lost in a sometimes sterile debate. The enormous task we have ahead of us is to assist in providing reliable, safe energy. We should stay focused, and not lose sight of the fundamentals for the sake of engaging in debates about technologies. No single specific technology stands out as being the solution; let me just point out that technology options should be evaluated in terms of the cost, value and sustainability of the global services they provide. People do not want energy in itself, but the services that energy can provide such as lighting, cooking, and productive activities. One aspect I find to be often neglected is the issue of energy conservation in buildings. The architecture of modern buildings in the third world with a huge increase in electricity consumption for air-conditioning is a threat to the future economy. We should learn from traditional methods using natural ventilation etc. Electricity in Africa is in any case a huge challenge. In my view there is no real alternative to a gradual expansion of the conventional grid. And hydropower has to be the basis for a large part of this. This means more regional cooperation and it means that what we do in the other great EU initiative from Johannesburg - water - will be very important also for energy. River basin management is crucial.

But energy in Africa is also about management of the continent's huge - and increasing- oil potential. And as much as the obvious link between poverty and the drama of fuel wood needs our attention, we also have to ask ourselves some questions about the paradox of continuing poverty and incredible social inequality in many oil exporting African countries.

A cross cutting element in all these aspects is the need for capacity building to create and manage regulatory frameworks that are relevant and adequate for Africa. We are not preaching privatisation of public utilities but we are urging our partners to respect reality and to keep management and politics separate. Economic, social and environmental sustainability has to be the basis of our work.

It is within this framework that the European Union decided to launch in Johannesburg, the EU Energy Initiative for Poverty Eradication and Sustainable Development. The aim of the Initiative is not purely to disburse funds; the gap which exists between the energy needs and the funds available is so big that no aid assistance can substantially contribute to reduce it. We need a concerted effort, first of all among the community, but also with the private sector. This is why I think that EU energy initiative for poverty eradication and sustainable development should not only join efforts between EU and African States, but also the business sector and civil society.

We need to make use of all the possible synergies which a sector like energy can trigger. In this regard, it is important that you establish appropriate links between the energy sector plans and the PRSP (Poverty Reduction Strategies) that your countries develop and donors regards as their entry point for their cooperation.

It may take time to deliver. I am aware of this. One precondition for success is an approach which is demand driven. This means dialogue, and only through dialogue can we define the nature and the scope of the different partnerships that the Initiative aims to build. This means hard work ahead of us, but unfortunately, there are no shortcuts.

The first year of the Initiative's development has focussed on laying the foundation, establishing consensus within the EU and developing an initial dialogue with beneficiaries and stakeholders. Several concrete activities have been identified, but much remains to be done by the Commission, Member States and Partner Countries to meet the challenges and ensure the Initiative delivers results which are commensurate with expectations created.

Today's conference is key to the success of our, YOUR initiative. Now, success depends on your own commitment in taking ownership of the initiative goals and making them your own.

I am sure that you will use these discussions to move forward on the issues of sustainable energy service provision for poverty alleviation. These two days of discussions should help increase mutual understanding between partners and allow for the conceptual development of an action plan. I urge you to share the experience you will have gained from these discussions within your own countries to assist in disseminating our common goals.

Thank you for your attention.

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• Commissioner Nielson visits Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar (19/11/2003)