Project Title:
Promoting Pro-Poor Low-Carbon Development Strategies.

Project Description:
The Project is to strengthen climate-policy networks in East and West Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. The Project supports national and regional climate campaigns focusing on promoting Pro-Poor Low-Carbon Development Strategies.

Aiming Building NGO Advocacy Capacity:
The project specifically aims to increase the ability of Southern civil society networks to promote fair and pro-poor low carbon strategies of their own governments related to climate-change policies and sustainable development. The Project increases the capacity of the networks and organisations to advocate, to monitor policies, and to raise awareness on pro-poor low carbon development strategies.

Background of the Project:
The Project is building on the experiences of the participating organisations and two previous NGO cooperation projects:"Southern Voices on Climate Change Project" (2011-2014).

Project Partners:
4 regional and 13 national climate networks including Climate Action Networks (CAN) and International Networks for Sustainable Energy (INFORSE).

Project Duration:
April 2014 - April 2016

Activities:

In East Africa, TATEDO (Tanzania Traditional Energy Development Organisation) is promoting low-carbon development in its role as INFORSE-East Africa coordinator, together with CAN-Uganda and a number of stakeholders in Tanzania and Uganda, including CAN Tanzania. As many areas in East Africa are suffering from depletion of biomass resources, the main focus is on biomass. As much as 1/3 of the use of wood for energy in Tanzania is unsustainable. The country loses 400,000 ha of forest per year to deforestation. Since 85- 90% of the energy used in Tanzania is from biomass, major problems are ahead with the deforestation, which also threatens the energy supply.

In Tanzania, TATEDO and its coalition of stakeholders are addressing the lack of focus and of strategy for biomass in the national policies. They promote a strategy combining:
- Promoting renewable energy, including, among others, solar and use of agricultural residues for energy
- Improving and promoting energy efficiency
- Large-scale dissemination of clean, fuel-saving cook stoves and other clean cooking methods
- Improving forest management and protection
They have promoted the strategy in meetings with ministries & a Parliament committee, in several events including a workshop on future biomass actions, and
in task forces. To explain their positions, they have produced a policy brief for decision-makers.

At the regional level, the focus has been on the East African Community (EAC), where TATEDO and partners have promoted low-carbon development at an expert workshop on Africa’s energy challenge, and at regional meetings on strengthening the capacity of African countries to promote renewable energy.
TATEDO and partners also developed two regional policy briefs.

In West Africa, ENDA is promoting low-carbon development in its role as INFORSE-West Africa coordinator together with Mali Folkecenter as well as with coalitions of stakeholders in Senegal and Mali. They focus on local energy supply for productive and household use. They see the need for local available energy for productive use as a key to further development. They promote, among others, energy-efficient baking ovens and solar electrification as solutions.

In Senegal, ENDA has organised a civil society coalition and has promoted low-carbon development solutions together with the coalition members at various events, including a march for the climate in Dakar in May 2015 with 1000 participants. The coalition also organised a stakeholder seminar, and promoted good practice solutions in other ways. To support the work, policy briefs were produced on the subjects of improved baking ovens and biogas plants.

In Mali, the low-carbon development coalition consists of the existing "Reso Climat Mali" together with local entrepreneurs. It has mainly promoted solar electrification including rural electrification and mini- grids for small towns. Efforts have included direct dialogues with government agencies, participation in events such as "open day for renewable energy", a radio programme, leaflets, and other documentation.

Regionally, the focus is on the ECOWAS (Economic Commission for West African States), with meetings with ECOWAS and with participation in the regional " Declic" process with energy and climate dialogues, for instance with local decision makers, civil society organisations and private sector. Among others this process developed a number of messages for the ECOWAS positions to the UNFCCC COP21.

Internationally, the activities in Africa were presented at side events of the UNFCCC COP21 on December 3, 2015 (UN Blue Zone), and December 8, 2015 (Public Forum of Climate Generation Area), and a UNFCCC Policy Brief was launched in the framework of a knowledge sharing workshop on December 2, 2015.

Read more on the activities:
- Article: Promoting Poverty-Reducing Low-Carbon Development Strategies in Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. The 3-page article was published in Sustainable Energy News issue 77, December 2015. (3-page pdf, 0.5 MB)
- Policy Brief: Pro-Poor, Low-Carbon Development Policy Brief for UNFCCC COP21, Paris, December 2, 2015 (8-page pdf, 0.5 MB)
- Presentations of the activities in Africa at the UNFCCC COP21 Side Events on December 3 and December 8, 2015 are available at INFORSE at UNFCCC COP21 web site.
- Review of national and regional activities in East and West Africa (links will be updated)

The Participating INFORSE Africa Organisations:
ENDA-Energy, Senegal; Mali Folkecenter, Mali; Tatedo, Tanzania and others.

The Participating Networks:
INFORSE---- International Network for Sustainable Energy (www.inforse.org)
CAN - ------ - Climate Action Network (www.climatenetwork.org)

The Project Coordinator:
The Danish NGO "SustainableEnergy" (in Danish: Vedvarende Energi).
Contact: Maria Graversen mg[@]ve.dk and Gunnar Boye Olesen for more information on gbo[@]ve.dk.


LCD Project's Links at Partners:

In Africa: TATEDO East Africa and INFORSE-Africa
Asia: INFORSE-Asia, and CAN-South Asia
Latin America: CANLA
Global: INFORSE, and CAN-International, and SustainableEnergy

The Project is Supported by:
The Danish Civil Society Fund for NGOs’ development projects administered by CISU - Civil Society in Development, an association of 280+ Danish non-profit, membership based NGOs/CSOs. The Fund is financed by DANIDA.