Landmark agenda for regional sustainable energy

The Ministerial Declaration on Regional Cooperation for Enhanced Energy Security and the Sustainable Use of Energy in Asia and the Pacific: Shaping the Future of Sustainable Energy in Asia and the Pacific was endorsed at the conclusion of the four-day Asian and Pacific Energy Forum 2013. The meeting was convened by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and hosted in Vladivostok by the Russian government.

The APEF/Vladivostok Plan of Action outlining regional and subregional priorities was also adopted with a vision of Asia and Pacific where sustainable energy for all is a reality, enhanced energy security is present from regional to household levels, an energy future is one of equity, diversification and access to all is secured, and the share of cleaner energies in the overall energy mix is increased.

“The vision of energy security and its sustainable use for Asia and the Pacific as contained in the Vladivostok Declaration adopted today will guide all concerned stakeholders in the region to move towards a more energy secured region that will provide better security for the lives of our people, particularly our most vulnerable groups,” Shun-ichi Murata, ESCAP deputy executive secretary said recently.

“The global community is now focusing on the post-2015 development agenda,” said Murata. “As energy will certainly be one of the critical issues to be included in the agenda, the forum’s outcome will make a significant contribution towards the shaping of the post-2015 development agenda.”

To fully capture perspectives on energy security within Asia and the Pacific, and to support consensus-building toward a regional energy strategy, ESCAP initiated five subregional consultation meetings in Bangkok, Delhi, Incheon, Moscow and Nadi, an Expert Group Meeting and Regional Preparatory Meeting in the lead up to APEF which enabled a thorough and engaging intergovernmental process.

To realise enhanced energy security and the future we want in Asia and the Pacific, ESCAP is drawing attention to seven focus areas including access to energy, energy efficiency, renewable energy, energy and environment, energy economics, trade and investment, and connectivity.