By Olimatou Coker
The Ministry of Petroleum, Energy and Mines in collaboration with the African Energy commission, recently hold a day validation workshop on the draft National Deep Decarbonisation Pathways (DDP) at Metzy Resident Hotel.
The deep decarbonisation pathway helps global and national decisions makers take action toward a deeply decarbonised world with drastically reduced inequalities
Nickson Bukachi Onger, African Union Senior Policy Officer on Energy and Energy Efficiency, said the development of Gambia’s National Deep Decarbonisation Pathways along with those for Madagascar and Botswana is a milestone under the larger African Energy Transition Programme (AFRETRAP) designed by African Ministers in 2023.
“This validation comes shortly after the endorsement of the African Energy Transition Strategy and Action Plan (ESTAP) by African stakeholders in April of this year.”
Mr Bukachi congratulated The Gambia for being among the pioneers in developing NDDPs aligned to the African Energy Transition Strategy and Action Plan.
He also pointed out that the energy transition discourse in Africa is not just about the existential threat posed by climate change, but it is also central to the continent’s socioeconomic development.
“Despite Africa’s historical share of global emissions being less 5%, African economies and communities lose between 5 to 15% of GDP annually due to the impacts of climate change. This is due to prolonged droughts, heatwaves and impacts of climate change that are now a major threat and source of distress to Africa,” he added.
He added that The Gambia has made significant progress in advancing electricity access.
“This suggests that the lessons learnt from the development of the Gambia’s NDDPs are not only useful in supporting other countries to develop their NDDPs but also that insights on interventions towards a net zero future derived from the work can be easily replicated to a larger extend in other Member States fortifying our choice of the Gambia as an initial beneficiary.”
Lamin Camara, the PS Ministry of Petroleum, Energy and Mines, said the NDDP is drafted with the view to move forward to chart the country`s energy transition path.
“As a Ministry, mandated to provide the overall policy direction and guidance for the energy sector, we remain committed to translate the aspirations of Agenda 2062 and the Paris agreement into quantifiable domestic action.”
He said The Gambia`s DDP was crafted with 3 principal aimed at translating political commitment into a quantified pathway.
