IRENA Celebrates First 5 Years

Tonight at its headquarters in Masdar City, IRENA gathered Member State representatives, international stakeholders and local leaders to celebrate its fifth year of operations.

The evening highlighted the successes of IRENA and of the renewable energy sector over the last five years. In addition to substantial development and growth in renewable energy capacity, investment, jobs and policies, a flourishing system for international cooperation on renewable energy has emerged. IRENA’s engagement with more 175 countries is producing outcomes that are filling knowledge gaps, strengthening domestic capacities, informing policies, highlighting the business case and raising awareness about the many benefits of renewable energy.

“The five years since the establishment of IRENA as a fully-fledged intergovernmental organisation have seen unprecedented development in the deployment of renewable energy at a global scale. Renewable energy has emerged from the margins of the global energy system and is increasingly seen as the solution to a myriad of challenges including climate change, air pollution, energy security, energy poverty and sustainable economic development.” – Adnan Z. Amin, IRENA Director-General

Since its first Assembly, 80 additional countries have joined the Agency bringing its total membership to 148, with 28 more countries in the process of joining.

H.E. Dr. Thani Alzeyoudi, UAE Minister of Climate Change and the Environment

“The growth of IRENA as an Agency is not just an IRENA success, but rather a testament to the strong commitment to renewable energy worldwide. IRENA was created to support and accelerate the ongoing global energy transition. Together with the strong support of our Members, we have made great strides in our first five years. We expect even greater achievements in the years to come.” – Mr. Amin

To push forward the work of the Agency into its next five years, more than 300 high-level government representatives from 94 countries will gather for IRENA’s 11^th Council meeting tomorrow in Abu Dhabi. Composed of 21 IRENA Members, the Council meets twice annually to facilitate cooperation among Members, oversee implementation of the IRENA work programme and complete substantive preparations for the Agency’s annual Assembly.

IRENA 5^th Anniversary video

Photos of the 5^th Anniversary reception and IRENA’s 11^th Council

Statistics from the past five years of renewable energy

IRENA's early history