Director-General’s speech signals IRENA’s first engagement with MENAREC

The fifth Middle East North Africa Renewable Energy Conference (MENAREC5) was held in Marrakech on 15-16 May. The conference brought together ministers and senior representatives from the countries of the Middle East and North Africa, and also included international organizations and the private sector. The IRENA Director-General was invited to preside over the first plenary session and to speak on the theme “Renewable Energy: Prospects and challenges of regional cooperation.” Mr. Amin spoke of the challenges and opportunities facing the world, and in particularly those relevant to the MENA region.

 

During his speech, Mr. Amin pointed out that “due to your substantial endowment of natural resources, the MENA region has the potential to be a global leader in renewable energy production, satisfying not only regional demand, but potentially also that of your neighbours.” The MENA region includes hydro, geothermal, ocean, and bioenergy, but its solar radiation and wind energy are particularly abundant.

“The challenge of creating and maintaining strong levels of deployment cannot be underestimated, it will require further cooperation, commitments, investment and initiatives” Mr. Amin told the 500 conference participants.

During the conference Mr. Amin also chaired a guided discussion with Ministers from Morocco, Egypt, Yemen, and Libya. The conference welcomed Libya’s offer to host MENAREC in 2014 and IRENA’s proposed support to the organisation of this conference. IRENA was also nominated as a committee member to follow up on recommendations from MENAREC5.

visit MENAREC5 website.

MENAREC5 Declaration: Coming soon

An interview with Mr. Amin in Les Echos is available here.