Twenty-Sixth Meeting of the IRENA Council
The IRENA Council is composed of 21 Member States elected for a two-year term and is accountable to the Assembly. Council members serve on a rotating basis to ensure the effective participation of both developing and developed countries and a fair and equitable geographical distribution. The Council’s responsibilities include facilitating consultation and cooperation among IRENA Members and reviewing the draft work programme, draft budget and annual report.
The twenty-sixth IRENA Council took place from 19-20 October 2023, in Abu Dhabi. The meetings of subsidiary organs of the Council took place on 18 October 2023, in Abu Dhabi.
IRENA’s thirteenth Assembly elected the following countries to serve on the Council in 2023:
Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Canada, China, Egypt, Germany, Ghana, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Nigeria, Panama, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Rwanda, Spain, Tonga, United Arab Emirates, United States of America and Zimbabwe.
Bangladesh, Cyprus, Denmark, Greece, Honduras, India, Malaysia, Mauritius, Saint Lucia, Togo, Uganda and Uruguay act as alternates.
The United States of America is the 26th Council Chair and Panama is a Vice-Chair.
Two committees currently assist the Council in its work:
- Administration and Finance Committee
Chair: the Kingdom of Tonga
Vice-Chair: the United Arab Emirates
Members: Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Iraq, Togo, Tonga, Saint Lucia and the United Arab Emirates - Programme and Strategy Committee
Chair: El Salvador
Vice-Chair: United States of America
Members: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, El Salvador, Japan, Kenya, Singapore, Türkiye, the United States of America, Uruguay, and Zimbabwe