UN Secretary-General António Guterres acknowledged on Sunday that renewable energies are «the only credible way» to avoid a climate catastrophe during the 13th Session of the Assembly of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), which is being held this weekend in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates).
«Only renewables can safeguard our future, close the energy access gap, stabilize prices and ensure energy security,» Guterres told the assembly.
The United Nations has warned that the goal of limiting the increase in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius is becoming less and less likely.
«With current policies, we are heading for 2.8 degrees of global warming by the end of the century. The consequences will be devastating. Several parts of our planet will be uninhabitable. And for many, this is a death sentence,» he added.
According to United Nations data, renewable energies currently account for 30 percent of the world’s electricity, a percentage that should double to more than 60 percent by 2030.
During the session, Guterres communicated the roadmap, known as the Five-Point Energy Plan, for carrying out an energy transition. The roadmap first specified the need to remove intellectual property barriers so that key renewable technologies, including energy storage, are treated as «global public goods».
In addition, it has urged countries to diversify and enable access to supply chains of raw materials and components for such energy sources. «This can help create millions of green jobs, especially for women and youth in the developing world,» he added.
Finally, the secretary general called on political leaders to accelerate the approval of sustainable projects and highlighted the value of energy subsidies as well as public and private investments to complete the energy transition.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
