Opportunities and Challenges in the Solar Sector in LLDCs

Thursday 12 December 2024, 13:15 – 14:45

The solar energy sector offers transformative potential for Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), where access to modern energy services remains inadequate and the rural-urban electricity gap is stark. Renewable energy, especially solar, is emerging as a powerful tool for these countries, enabling decentralized energy solutions, such as minigrids and standalone systems like solar home units and solar-powered lights. These solutions not only address energy consumption needs but also empower productive uses of equipment across various sectors, from agriculture to healthcare. Additionally. Solar energy can help countries mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and diversify their energy mix, thus contributing to energy security, energy transition and support industrialisation in emerging economies in a sustainable manner.

Solar energy in LLDCs can therefore play a key role in improving access to energy, promoting sustainable development, and creating economic opportunities, including much-needed local employment.

This session will focus on actionable outcomes to drive the growth of the solar sector in LLDCs, with a particular emphasis on increasing solar usage across essential application areas like electricity, agriculture, and clean cooking. The session will highlight how solar technology can stimulate startup ecosystems, encourage innovation, and attract financial investments through public-private partnerships. Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) play a crucial role in attracting and facilitating these much-needed investments, with a focus on developing bankable projects that align with LLDCs’ renewable energy goals. Initiatives by ISA and WAIPA, such as ISA’s SolarX Startup Challenge, Solar Technology Application Resource Centre (STAR-C) in several countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Solar for She Initiative and others. In addition to IPA technical advisory and capacity-building programs by WAIPA, exemplify efforts to build countries capacities, empowering women and youth, create project pipelines, support new technologies, and connect LLDCs with global best practices in renewable energy.

The program will include:

• A high-level ministerial session (30 minutes)
• A panel discussion with a diverse group of speakers, including an Investment Promotion Agency head, WAIPA and ISA representatives, a private sector solar player, and a financial institution representative (40 minutes)
• Videos of SolarX Startup winners from LLDC countries (5 minutes)

Please email your details at [email protected] to confirm your participation. (please include your name, designation, company, email, and WhatsApp number). Please note that participants will need to be registered to attend the LLDC3 conference.