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UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon (FP)

Over 100 commitments have been made to date, and actions have already been mobilized in support of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Energy For All initiative.

This announcement was made today at the Rio+20 sustainable development summit by the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, who said that this demonstrated powerful, early momentum from governments, the private sector companies and civil society organisations to attain the goal by the year 2030.

"Achieving sustainable energy for all is not only possible, but necessary. It is the golden thread that connects development, social inclusion and environmental protection," the Secretary General said. He noted that the initiative was garnering significant action from all sectors of society. Working together, we can provide solutions that drive economic growth, expand equity and reduce the risks of climate change."

Since its launch in September 2011, Sustainable Energy For All has seen more than 50 governments from Africa, Asia, Latin America and several Small Islands Developing States engaged with the initiative, and have put appropriate energy plans and programmes in place to achieve it.

Mr. Ban said "the initiative provides a powerful model for the future," and he promised that the UN would "bring all key stakeholders to the table to work in the common cause for the common good. This innovation shows the power of partnership and the ability of the United Nations to spearhead transformational change," the Secretary General noted.

According to the UN, "the early success of this initiative stems from its ability to convene key stakeholders and catalyze specific commitments around a "Global Action Agenda," which serves as a roadmap for achieving Sustainable Energy For All. It has pointed out that the Action Agenda had identified high impact opportunities that could guide the work of stakeholders across all sectors of the economy.

Barbados has taken a lead role in this matter, and was in the vanguard of the recently concluded conference here that brought the theme to the fore. That meeting was used as a precursor to the Rio+20 summit.

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