The first All-Africa Energy Week

The African Development Bank (AfDB), in cooperation with the African Union Commission (AUC), and the United Nations Economic

Commission for Africa (ECA), will host the First All-Africa Energy Week (AAWE) from 1-5 November 2010 in Maputo, Mozambique.

The AAWE will tak

e place on the theme: “Energy Infrastructure and Services in the Context of Climate Challenges”.

The overall objectives of the AAEW are:

• to achieve more efficient, coherent and coordinated actions towards increasing energy access and developing the energy sector in Africa;

• and to accelerate progress through dialogue and partnerships in scaling up investments in the African energy sector.

Expected outcomes:

The key expected outcomes of the conference are:

• Private sector participation in infrastructure development promoted, and capacity of public and private sectors to invest in energy and energy related sectors improved.
• Update on progress achieved towards institutional and regional goals, international, continental and regional organizations in each African regions reviewed and monitored. A monitoring mechanism will be adopted;
• More consensus, coherence and strategic partnerships among key players (international, public and private) for the development and investments in energy projects built; A communication strategy will be designed.
• Strategic and operational tools for supporting the implementation the African clean energy agenda improved;
• Best practices and updated knowledge on energy and energy-related infrastructure including clean energy infrastructure and services shared and disseminated among relevant stakeholders.
• New knowledge shared and consensus built on responses to emerging important regional or global issues related to clean energy technologies;
• Capacity to effectively manage the oil/gas sector so that it contributes to promote broad-based economic growth strengthened;
• Energy planning capabilities at the country and REC’s level improved; and
• Adoption by Ministers of the mandate and modalities of functioning of CEMA, and a Declaration on important decisions related to continental policies in the energy sector, including the modalities for the operationalisation of the African Petroleum Fund, conclusions of studies on solar energy in Africa, strategy for geothermal development, progress report on the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), the launching of the AAEW series, issues on Africa-EU partnership, the PAIF and others.

The All-Africa Energy Week will be organised jointly with the Pan African Investment Forum and the AU Conference of African Energy Ministers.

It will comprise plenary and break-out sessions, parallel and side events and a ministerial round-table. An exhibition of clean energy technologies and services for poverty reduction and sustainable development will also be organized. Plenary sessions will involve executive keynote addresses and invited experts’ presentations.

Target beneficiaries are energy-sector policy-makers in Africa, energy development partners, national and sub-regional energy development actors, energy investors, private sector, energy experts in R&D, and energy stakeholders.

The AAEW will be a recurrent event that would provide a mechanism for monitoring progress achieved in the sector. The AAEW will feature executive business-like and strategic dialogue and knowledge sharing on African energy development issues.

The work programme can be consulted here.

AU Concept note "Energy Infrastructure and Services in the context of Climate Challenges"