January 28, 2021 marked a major milestone in our joint research and advocacy work with the Stimson Center, known as the Powering Peace initiative. Together with the Permanent Missions to the United Nations of Norway and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), EPP and the Stimson Center convened a high-level UN event to present the findings of our latest report Shifting Power: Transitioning to Renewable Energy in UN Peace Operations. The report offered an overview of policies and practices around energy in UN field missions, in the context of ambitious UN Secretariat Climate Action Plan (UNSCAP) targets to source 40% of electricity from renewable sources by 2025 and 80% by 2030. It documented lessons from the field and provided recommendations for system-level change that would enable the UN to meet these goals. The link to the full video of the event and selected clips can be found below.
The event was significant for five reasons:
1) It was the first event to provide high-level stakeholders - from the UN Secretariat, UN field missions, and UN Member States (who provide political, financial, and logistical support to field missions) – a forum in which to share perspectives on the issue of accelerating renewable energy transitions in UN field missions. The Secretariat was represented by the UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support and the UN Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Climate Action. The Head and Deputy Head of the UN missions in Somalia and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), respectively, shared their experiences from the field. In addition to co-hosts Norway and the UAE, numerous UN Member States weighed in on the issue, including China, Russia, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Italy, Korea, and Lebanon. The majority of member states were represented directly by their Permanent Representatives, reflecting interest in the issue at the ambassador level.
2) Senior leaders of the UN missions in Somalia and DRC made a compelling case for taking a more proactive approach to adopting renewable energy in the field. They detailed both the environmental and security benefits of transitioning to renewable sources of power, noted the enormous catalytic purchasing power of UN field mission operations, and provided actionable recommendations such as simplifying procurement practices for renewable energy equipment. They conveyed their commitment to helping the UN Secretariat meet the UNSCAP targets by highlighting their own pioneering efforts transitioning, respectively, to solar power in Somalia and hydropower in DRC. They emphasized the importance of sustained political leadership and a change in institutional culture in order to bring about system-wide transformation. Notably, they also explained how their respective mission’s transition to renewable energy can help support the effectiveness of their peacebuilding mandates, within the contexts of Somalia and eastern DRC. The presentations by the mission leaders served to inform Secretariat and member state representatives of the progress that is achievable and the challenges that remain.
James Swan, Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM)
David Gressly, Deputy Heady of UN mission in Democratic Republic of Congo
3) UN member states expressed broad political support for the notion of the United Nations leading by example on climate change by accelerating renewable energy transitions in UN field missions. This issue brings together member states committed to climate action, sustainable development, and international peace and security as well as those providing the considerable financial and human resources required for UN field missions. Notably, three of the UN Security Council members that participated in the event - permanent members China and France plus non-permanent member Norway, expressed their support on this issue. This reflects growing interest among members of the Council – which authorizes UN peace operations as part of its role in ensuring international peace and security – to integrate climate security issues into the Council’s agenda.
4) There was consensus among stakeholders that renewable energy provides a new entry point for UN field operations to fulfill their responsibility toward host nations. The discussion highlighted how increasing renewable energy deployment in field missions provides an opportunity to deliver benefits both inside and outside the fence, i.e., cheaper, cleaner power both for the missions themselves and for the communities they are deployed to serve. The head of the mission in Somalia noted the signing of a groundbreaking power purchase agreement, with private sector solar project developer Kube Energy, that will also benefit the local community in the town of Baidoa. This is significant as it reflects increasing interest by missions to leave behind a positive legacy, particularly as the largest missions are deployed in some of the most fragile and least electrified countries. Stakeholders noted that the renewable energy footprints of these field missions can be leveraged to help host nations meet their Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by transitioning to more sustainable sources of power.
5) A number of stakeholders, echoing the conclusions in our report, highlighted the potential positive impact of renewable energy on peace and security. Linking renewable energy to peace and security, stakeholders commented that renewable energy, as the leading recipient of global climate finance, offers a way to deliver tangible peace dividends in the fragile and conflict-affected states where field missions are deployed. For example, the Deputy Head of MONUSCO noted the positive peace and security implications of the mission’s connection to Virunga National Park hydropower, as new transmission lines help to expand access to electricity and increase economic opportunities in conflict-affected region.
The event, and particularly the presentations by the mission leaders, validated the findings and recommendations in our report and provided an opportunity to keep the ambitious UNSCAP goals, set by the UN Secretary-General in September 2019, on the agenda. We believe that it recommitted the key UN decision-makers, many of whom were represented at the event, to deliver on the targets by drawing inspiration from the field and support from UN member states. It also situated this area of work within the context of an emerging conversation within the UN’s peace and security architecture about climate change.
Looking ahead
EPP and Stimson will leverage the attention generated by the event by convening a series of follow-on workshops and webinars to sustain political momentum and offer implementation options for scaling up the energy transition in UN field missions. These include the upcoming launch of a new country case study on Mali and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), additional county case studies, and a series of workshops and webinars on related themes.
You can watch the entire event below