The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): “A universal call for action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity”. Among these goals, SDG-7 is to ensure universal “access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”. Present progress on SDG-7 falls far behind on all four of its sub targets. In South Asia the situation is alarming as 27% of the population in the region has no access to electricity. Likewise, more than three fifth South Asians are still dependent on traditional biomass for cooking and heating.
SAARC Energy Centre (SEC) being the technical arm of SAARC on energy, conducted a virtual consultative workshop on “Achieving SDG-7 in South Asia” 25th November 2021. Delegates from the SAARC Member States and experts from regional/international organizations including UNESCAP, NEECA Pakistan, and Cambridge, England participated in this workshop. Following important aspects were covered during the consultative workshop:
- Role of SAARC Energy Centre towards achieving SDG-7,
- Progress on SDG-7 (South Asia Vs Asia-Pacific),
- Importance of linking SDG-5 with SDG-7 in South Asia and
- Doubling the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency by 2030.