Feb 20, 2013
UNEP Announces New Partnership with Global
Off-Grid Lighting Association
Nairobi, 20 February 2013 - Replacing the
millions of kerosene lamps, candles and
flashlights used worldwide with modern solar
lighting can provide an increasingly low-cost
solution to reducing carbon emissions, indoor
air pollution and health risks, and boosting
green jobs, according to new studies from
the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP).
UNEP also announced
today a new strategic partnership with the
private sector to facilitate a market shift
towards energy-efficient, off-grid lighting
and to reduce the estimated 74 million tons
of annual carbon emissions from fuel-based
light sources commonly used in developing
countries.
FURTHER RESOURCES
Country lighting assessments
The en.lighten initiative
GOGLA
Off-Grid Lighting Assessment - Kenya
Off-Grid Lighting Assessment - Nigeria
The collaboration with the Global Off-Grid
Lighting Association (GOGLA) will see the
launch of an international effort to accelerate
the deployment of enabling policies towards
sustainable off-grid lighting.
To underscore the new partnership, the UNEP-led
en.lighten initiative has unveiled new national
assessments for 80 countries on the economic
and environmental gains that can be achieved
through a shift to solar-powered alternatives.
The studies show that
if Kenya, for example, replaced all fuel-based
lighting with solar-powered light emitting
diode (LED) systems, the costs would be
repaid in only seven months, due to major
fuel savings.
Kenya currently spends
around US$ 900 million per year on off-grid
lighting, and fuel-based light sources in
the country are responsible for over 2.3
million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions
per year.
"Replacing the
world's 670 million kerosene lamps with
cleaner, safer solar-powered lighting represents
a major opportunity to deliver across multiple
fronts, from cuts in global carbon emissions,
health risks from indoor air pollution,
support for green technologies and the generation
of green jobs," said UN Under Secretary-General
and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
"UNEP's new partnership
with GOGLA strengthens our ongoing work
with some 50 developing countries and leading
lighting companies to move away from incandescent
and other inefficient light bulbs. Supporting
both sustainable off-grid and on-grid lighting
can bring about major financial savings
in a short time, as well as additional educational,
health and environmental benefits towards
the achievement of the Millennium Development
Goals," added Mr. Steiner.
"GOGLA is the industry
advocate for promoting clean, quality off-grid
lighting systems that benefit society and
businesses in developing and emerging markets,"
said Wolfgang Gregor, Secretary-General
of the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association
(GOGLA).
"We want to ensure
that decision-makers and government officials
are aware about the importance of modern
off-grid lighting solutions and recognize
the potential of this multi-billion dollar
market. This will lead to the implementation
of policies that address product quality
standards and environmental issues and create
sustainable employment."
Country Lighting Assessments
Highlight Significant Savings
Globally, over 1.3 billion
people live without access to electric light.
Some 25 billion litres
of kerosene are used annually to fuel the
world's kerosene lamps, which costs end-users
a total of up to US$23 billion each year.
This has an even higher price tag if government
subsidies are taken into account.
If Nigeria used modern
off-grid lighting solutions, according to
the UNEP assessment, the country could save
over US$1.4 billion annually. Replacing
all of the kerosene, candles and batteries
used annually for off-grid lighting would
save Nigeria the equivalent of 17.3 million
barrels of crude oil.
In addition to saving
money and reducing greenhouse gas emissions,
phasing out kerosene lamps and candles greatly
reduces risks from burns, fires, and respiratory
illnesses caused by indoor smoke.
Eliminating the need
for flashlights powered by disposable batteries
will also greatly reduce hazardous waste
disposal in landfill and related environmental
damage.
Although solar LED systems
have a higher initial cost than traditional
fuel-based lamps, the payback period can
be very short due to the high running costs
of fuel-based lighting systems.
The UNEP assessments
show that the payback period in most countries
is less than a year, and sometimes just
a matter of months, depending on the cost
of the LED system and the local price of
kerosene.
They are the first studies
of their kind to analyze the magnitude of
financial savings, health benefits, development
and carbon emission reductions that a coordinated
global transition to modern and sustainable
off-grid lighting solutions can deliver.
New Initiative on Off-Grid
Lighting in West Africa
UNEP is also launching
a new programme in cooperation with the
German government to work directly with
West African countries to accelerate a transition
to sustainable, off-grid lighting.
On average, 76 per cent
of the population in West Africa lacks access
to electricity and spends up to 20 per cent
of the household budget on kerosene for
lighting. Efficient off-grid lighting systems
are available in the region and can deliver
high performance, affordable and better
quality lighting.
Germany's Federal Ministry
for Economic Co-operation and Development
(BMZ) is providing support to UNEP to facilitate
the development of a regional policy to
enable the penetration of sustainable off-grid
lighting solutions in the Economic Community
of West African States (ECOWAS) region.
GOGLA will contribute to this initiative
by providing the industry insight necessary
to assist with the development of policies
and programmes.
The joint effort supports
the UN Secretary-General's Sustainable Energy
for All initiative and its goal of achieving
universal access to modern energy services
by 2030.
Key facts
Over 1.3 billion people
worldwide live without access to electric
light
There are approximately 900 million inefficient
off-grid light points in use
Annual global expenditure on kerosene for
lighting may be as high as $US23 billion,
for candles up to $US7 billion and on batteries
for flashlights up to US$2.5 billion
Consumers in Africa spend between US$12
- 17 billion annually on fuel-based lighting
Consumers in Asia spend between US$9 - 13
billion annually on fuel-based lighting
Solar lighting systems source energy from
the sun so there is no running cost and
no emissions when in use
Solar LED systems improve the quality of
light and eliminate the health risks associated
with fuel-based lighting such as burns,
house-fires, carbon monoxide, volatile organics,
black soot and other air quality problems
The widespread use of modern, off-grid lighting
technologies delivers significant socio-economic,
health and environmental benefits including:
new income generation opportunities for
small businesses; longer hours and better
illumination for studying; improved safety
by reducing the fire hazard associated with
flammable fuels; and improved health from
less indoor air pollution and greenhouse
gas emissions
Notes to Editors
The en.lighten initiative
has been established to accelerate efforts
to reduce dangerous carbon emissions and
the threat of global climate change around
the world. The initiative has set a target
date for the global phase-out of all inefficient
lighting by the end of 2016.
It is a public-private
partnership led by UNEP and the Global Environment
Facility (GEF) in collaboration with Philips
Lighting, OSRAM, and the National Lighting
Test Centre of China.
It also partners with
other organizations such as: the Super-efficient
Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD)
initiative on lighting; the World Bank/IFC's
Lighting Africa programme; and lites.asia
to catalyse the global market to make a
sustainable, permanent shift toward quality
solar LED lighting systems.
More information on
the en.lighten initiative is available at:
www.enlighten-initiative.org
GOGLA
GOGLA has been established
to act as the industry advocate for the
distribution of clean, quality lighting
systems to replace fuel-based lighting.
It is a neutral, independent, not-for-profit
association created to promote lighting
solutions that benefit society and business
in developing counties.
More information on
the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association
is available at: www.gogla.org
