UAE launches Etihad 7 programme to fund renewable energy projects in Africa

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) has launched the Etihad 7 programme to securing funding for renewable energy projects in Africa at the ongoing Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2022.

Etihad 7 aims to supply clean electricity to 100 million people by 2035.

#UAE launches Etihad 7 program to fund renewable energy projects in #Africa at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2022. https://t.co/vPT2a2if4r@ADSWagenda pic.twitter.com/8OMEcc7iaA

— وزارة الخارجية والتعاون الدولي (@MoFAICUAE) January 18, 2022

It will raise funds from the public and private sectors for clean energy investment with guidance and coordination from the UAE’s MoFAIC and Office of the Special Envoy for Climate Change.

The Etihad 7 initiative will help African nations meet their rapidly growing energy needs without the corresponding surge in greenhouse gas emissions.

“United by economic, cultural, political, and people-to-people ties, our two regions are inextricably linked, with enormous potential for further cooperation in the years to come. One of the keys to unlocking that potential, supercharging Africa’s economies, and allowing millions of people to contribute to building a prosperous continent is electricity–specifically, renewable energy,” said Sheikh Shakhbout bin Nahyan Al Nahyan, Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, according to WAM.

“With Etihad 7, the UAE consolidates its UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 efforts for Africa under a single initiative. In line with the UAE’s foreign policy and development goals, the programme facilitates sustainable development by solving key challenges that hinder clean and affordable energy in emerging markets,” he added.

“We will leverage our existing relationships in Sub-Saharan Africa, including diplomatic, humanitarian, and development cooperation, to share the UAE’s renewable energy expertise to advance economic and human development. Etihad 7 is a truly collaborative programme, one that acknowledges and adapts to the needs and requirements of our partner nations.”

He noted that the UAE already has a number of agreements in place with Sub-Saharan African partners under Etihad 7 to join them in pursuing clean energy aims.

Read: UAE business leaders welcome hosting of COP28 in 2023

The UAE is set to host global climate change conference COP28 in 2023. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said that UAE was chosen as following a unanimous endorsement by the Asia Pacific Group of nations during COP26 in Glasgow last November.

The UAE announced last year a new Net Zero 2050 Strategic Initiative to reduce carbon emissions. The county will spend over Dhs600bn on renewable energy until 2050. The UAE plans 50 per cent of its energy to come from renewable sources by 2050. The UAE is targeting an energy mix that combines renewable, nuclear and clean energy sources.