The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Council on Ethanol Clean Cooking (CECC), in collaboration with the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), are excited to announce an upcoming webinar focused on the critical role of policy in driving ethanol’s positive impact. Building upon the insights gained from our previous webinar, “Seizing the Pathway for Ethanol and Stove Standards,” this event will explore global, regional, and country-level experiences in developing and adopting standards for fuel-grade ethanol and stoves.
Save the date: The webinar will take place on September 17th at 15:00 CEST.
By examining challenges and best practices in ethanol policy implementation, this webinar will provide valuable guidance for stakeholders seeking to optimize their ethanol infrastructure and expand access to clean cooking solutions.
We invite you to join us for this important discussion. Further details regarding speakers and agenda will be shared soon.
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) organized a two-day workshop focused on developing the strategic plan newly formed association of SMEs and Entrepreneurs into clean cooking – Madagascar Clean Cooking Initiative (MCCI). The workshop took place from July 8 to 9, in Antananarivo, Madagascar. The MCCI has an objective to promote a minimum of Tier-2 clean cooking solutions and currently has 38 industry members across 11 regions of Madagascar and chaired by Ms. Marie-Louise Schmidt Rasoamanahirana.
With a vision centered on energy transition, MCCI is committed to promoting the widespread adoption of clean cooking solutions. Their primary objective is to develop and advocate for clean cooking solutions with a minimum Tier 2 rating in Madagascar, aiming to reduce deforestation, enhance public health, and boost the local economy.
MCCI is ready to accelerate this energy transition through clean cooking solutions. However, to achieve their goals, they require support from the public sector, technical and financial partners. The clean cooking sector holds significant potential for economic growth and deserves a central place in Madagascar’s energy landscape. Beyond environmental benefits, MCCI also focuses on social inclusiveness by fostering local employment by creating sustainable economic opportunities.
Through close collaboration with all stakeholders, MCCI strives to ensure that clean cooking technologies become accessible and affordable for all Malagasy households. With concerted efforts, the clean cooking sector can drive substantial advancements in energy efficiency, health improvements, and environmental conservation in Madagascar.
MCCI is an initiative of the Ministry of Energy and Hydrocarbons (MEH), the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD), and UNIDO, aimed to advance SDG13 (Climate Action) and SDG 7, especially universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern clean cooking fuels and technologies.
The workshop gathered a diverse group of stakeholders from the renewable energy sector. Key officials Mr. Thierry Andriantsoa, General Secretary and Mr. Sambatra Ramiandrasson, General Director from the Ministry of Energy and Hydrocarbons (MEH), the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD), and several other stakeholders including private sector participated in the event. During the official opening, government representatives outlined Madagascar’s ambitious plans for development of clean cooking sector.
Kenny Marco Louis Fidiarison, Director of Energy Production Development from Biological Ingredients (DPEBIO), highlighted the goal of raising the rate of clean cooking usage from 1% to 20.1% by 2030. He emphasized that this target is part of a broader public-private partnership (3P) strategy, which is crucial to achieving sustainable development goals.
The resolutions and strategic plan from the workshop are set to be submitted to the Government Council, aiming to translate the outcome of the workshop into concrete actions. This initiative underscores the importance of modern, nature-based cooking methods, which promise significant improvements in public health and environmental preservation. Modern clean cooking solutions are crucial for reducing indoor air pollution, a major health hazard linked to respiratory illnesses and premature deaths. Additionally, these solutions help mitigate deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to environmental conservation.
Adopting clean cooking methods also brings significant economic and social benefits. It reduces the time and money spent on fuel collection and purchasing, enabling families to engage in more productive activities. Moreover, it enhances safety, particularly for women and children who are often responsible for gathering fuel and cooking, reducing the risk of burns and other injuries.
The workshop highlighted the short-term goal to transition to a minimum of Tier-2 clean cooking solutions using improved biomass stoves, other various clean cooking solutions, LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) stoves and electric stoves, biogas, bioethanol where it is affordable and available. These solutions are essential for making cooking safer, more efficient, and environmentally friendly.
Overall, the clean cooking workshop in Antananarivo marks a significant step forward in Madagascar’s journey towards universal access to clean cooking. By placing renewable energies at the heart of national strategies, the country is ready to make substantial progress in public health, environmental protection, and economic development.
The CECC in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), UNIDO, SEforAll, OPEC Fund for International Development, and the Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA) organized a side event themed Catalysing Sustainable Development Goals through Clean Cooking on the first day of the International Vienna Energy and Climate Forum (IVECF). The side event had four sessions with expert speakers from various sectors.
The themes of the four sessions were: Messages from Leaders on Clean Cooking, Sharing Lessons from Clean Cooking Policies and Projects Implementation, Financing for Innovative Clean Cooking Solutions and Catalyzing women and youth empowerment through Clean Cooking. The opening session was a high-level segment which included statements from heads of organizations and leaders on their visions and the strategies for promoting clean cooking solutions and achieving SDG7 (Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all) by their respective organizations.
The focus of the second session was to synthesize and share lessons from countries that have successful policies to accelerate the uptake of clean cooking solutions. The panelists shared insights on examples of successful policy frameworks and viable business models for scaling up modern energy cooking solutions. The speakers highlighted the need for national targets and corresponding policies to go hand in hand in order to ensure that clean cooking is considered a priority. Furthermore, the private sector involvement was identified to be crucial since they have the role of taking the ambitions and public funding to bring it to the household level. When developing clean cooking solutions it is important to see the opportunity that locally produced solutions can bring with respect to green job creations and inclusion of indigenous knowledge.
The session on finance for innovative clean cooking solutions included discussions on the importance of carbon financing in the clean cooking sector, supporting the private sector through derisking facilities, and the innovative financing mechanism Results- Based-Financing.
Carbon finance is and will continue to be critical to expanding clean cooking beyond the growing middle-class/urbanizing population. The speakers highlighted the key role that carbon credits play in increasing revenues for clean cooking companies, increasing the financial viability of these businesses and their attractiveness to private investors.
The final session was an experience sharing on how to ensure women and youth have equal opportunities to lead, participate in, and benefit from a just and inclusive transition to clean cooking for all. The discussions were a call for action highlighting the role gender policies play in creating an enabling environment for access to clean cooking. Women and youth are vulnerable populations who are disproportionately affected by unsustainable cooking practices. When transitioning to clean cooking solutions it is vital to ensure that they can access the alternatives. Gender policy and participation are instrumental in enabling this. Furthermore, capacity building for women and youth increases their economic empowerment and equips them with skills necessary to ensure a bigger growth in the sector.
