|
Tuesday 22 May 2012, Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), Suva, Fiji –
The Pacific now joins other regions of the world that have commemorated the United Nations (UN) declared International Year of Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) through a regional roll-out event.
The Pacific roll-out of SE4All was held in Suva, Fiji on 18 May. It was a collaborative effort by national, regional and international agencies in the Pacific to mark the year and raise awareness of the importance of an energy-secure Pacific.
Energy security is important to the Pacific, where about seven million people out of the region’s ten million still do not have electricity. While more than 90% of households in the small island states and more than 80% in Polynesia have access to electricity, it is still below 30% in some of the larger and more populated Melanesian countries.
Moreover, the region continues to rely heavily on fossil fuel, which supplies about 95% of the region’s commercial energy needs. Not surprisingly, the cost of electricity is among the highest in the world. Total energy losses in some power utilities are as high as 25% and renewable energy opportunities and efficiency gains in the transport sector remain generally under-utilised.
The keynote address at the Pacific roll-out was delivered by His Excellency Ratu Epeli Nailatikau, the President of the Republic of Fiji, a committed and strong advocate of green and sustainable development, who recently completed a 30 km walk in Suva in support of the Earth Hour initiative.
‘The situation is no longer confined solely to an energy security situation. Rather, it poses as an imminent threat to the security of our economy, our livelihood and our sovereignty as a nation,’ the President said.
|
