The Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program (K-CEP) and the Ministry of Environment, in partnership with the Rwanda Environment Management Authority, UN Environment, UNDP and GIZ, have convened the Africa Cooling Efficiency Conference in Kigali. The one-day event held today March 22 brought together approximately 50 cooling and energy efficiency stakeholders, decision makers and experts.
The conference examined regional green cooling initiatives, and highlighted progress and lessons learned from lowering costs of ownership, improving efficiency, and reducing impacts of cooling products. It also looked at how to maximize efficiency across the continent by sharing best practices. The event was a chance to secure commitments from a range of stakeholders to collaborate across sector and borders on priority opportunities.
“More efficient cooling can help improve access to energy, save consumers of energy money on their bills, reduce pollution, improve health and enhance economic productivity. But work needs to be done to set and enforce technology standards, and to develop financial mechanisms to ensure product affordability. Rwanda led the world to look seriously at cooling efficiency and now is the time for all of us to work hard to make this opportunity a reality for all,” said Dan Hamza-Goodacre, Executive Director, Kigali Cooling Efficiency Programme.
The conference was held as a follow up to the 28th Meeting of Parties to the Montreal Protocol, which took place in Rwanda and which led to the Kigali Amendment. Through the amendment, countries agreed to phasedown the use of HFCs – dangerous greenhouse gases used in cooling systems. Appliances which depend on HFCs are known to consume more energy compared to new technologies which depend on natural gases.
Speaking about Rwanda’s efforts to improve cooling efficiency and phase out HFCs, Minister of Environment, Vincent Biruta, said: “In Rwanda, we are working with the Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program (K-CEP) on the Rwanda Cooling Initiative. The new project, which held its inception meeting yesterday, will conduct a detailed energy efficiency market survey, and develop a National Cooling Strategy and energy performance standards. We are pleased to be working with K-CEP and the United Nations Environment Programme on this initiative, and we are confident it will support Rwanda to meet its obligations under the Kigali Amendment.”
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