Minister of Petroleum Teneng Mba Jaiteh on Wednesday officially launched the Global Environment Facility -GEF/UNIDO Project which aims at promoting Renewable Energy Based Mini-Grids for productive uses in Rural Areas of The Gambia.
The forum that attracted stakeholders from various sectors was held at the Kairaba Beach Hotel.
Minister Jaiteh was deputising President Jammeh, who is also the Minister of Energy.
She said the provision of a reliable system of energy supply that is efficient, affordable and environmentally friendly is one of the key components of the Gambia Government’s new development blueprint - the Programme for Accelerated Growth and Employment (PAGE).
“Currently, the energy situation in The Gambia is characterized by high dependence on biomass fuels, limited access to modern energy services and unsustainable dependence on imported fossil fuels,” she said.
All of The Gambia’s modern energy services requirements are met from imported fossil-based sources, which is not only affecting the country’s foreign exchange reserves, thus making the country vulnerable to fluctuation in world oil prices, but it also results in the emission of greenhouse gases.
“In cognizance of this, the Government of The Gambia is collaborating with its development partners to properly and judiciously harness the available renewable energy resources, with the aim of reducing the country’s dependence on imported energy sources and help fight against climate change,” she remarked.
According to him, the project seeks to support productive enterprises in the rural areas of The Gambia, thereby improving rural incomes and reducing poverty.
The project will also create the necessary market environment by developing the appropriate legal and regulatory framework that will ensure full participation of the private sector in the renewable energy sub-sector.
He added that renewable energy presents a unique opportunity which needs to be properly and judiciously utilised to help address “the development challenges of our time”, such as rising energy prices, energy access and security and global warming.
For his part, Momodou B. Sarr, executive director of the National Environment Agency, thanked GEF and UNIDO for supporting and facilitating the project.
