The Third General Assembly Meeting of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) was held on 13-14 January 2013 in Abu Dhabi, and the CARICOM Secretariat represented by its Programme Manager, Energy, participated as an Observer. Four CARICOM Member States were also represented, viz, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Guyana, and St. Vincent and Grenadines.
The CARICOM Secretariat representative delivered a presentation on the Strategic Approach to Sustainable Energy being pursued in CARICOM. It was mutually concluded that based on the scope and modalities of support proposed by IRENA for CARICOM, it would be beneficial for IRENA to engage with the CARICOM Secretariat on a specific work programme through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Arising from the discussions at the Meetings, the CARICOM Secretariat considers that the tools and support for RE Mapping and Renewables Readiness Assessments (RRAs), as well as, IRENA’s capacity to assist with the deployment of roadmaps are particularly relevant to the efforts in CARICOM to establish the Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and Strategy (CSERMS).
IRENA’s Director-General, Adnan Z. Amin, launched the Global Renewable Energy Islands Network (GREIN) as a platform for pooling knowledge, sharing best practices, and seeking innovative solutions for accelerated uptake of clean and cost-effective renewable energy technologies on islands. Ministers and other participants from 48 countries had called on IRENA to establish such a network at the Renewables and Islands Meeting in Malta in September 2012. The CARICOM Secretariat considers the GREIN as a useful vehicle to provide support for Member States and sought to encourage Member States to join the Initiative.
