Monrovia – The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Liberia with support from the United Nations Environment Program has ended a two day validation workshop on fuel efficiency initiative development in Liberia.
Report by Gerald C. Koinyeneh – [email protected]
The Deputy Executive Director of the EPA, Urias S. Goll noted that the workshop centered on discussing key issues including the findings of the baseline survey on fuel efficiency in Liberia as a follow up activity under the Global Fuel Efficiency Initiative (GFEI) that aims at promoting cleaner and more fuel efficient vehicles worldwide.
Mr. Goll said that the seminar discussed initiative to promote fuel efficiency and reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emission as well as the negative impacts of inefficient vehicles in Liberia existing national policies and regulations on fuel efficiency; and review for validation the proposed policy option and other new policies to improve the country’s vehicle fuel efficiency.
“According to the GFEI report of fuel economy in 2014, the global transport sector contributes about 25% of the energy related global contributes about 25% of the energy related global greenhouse gas emissions.”
“Globally the transport sector is rising faster than any other and the number of vehicles on the planet is set to triple by 2015-the vast majority in non-OECD countries,” Mr. Goll noted.
He furthered that promoting fuel efficiency and reducing Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is a key global development agenda; adding that the GFEI has set a target of 50% improvement in vehicle fuel economy in new Light Duty Vehicles (LDVs) by 2030 and across the total global car stock by 20150 as part of the post 2015 Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) framework.
The EPA’s Deputy Boss also noted that one way of reducing emissions in Liberia is to further improve efficiency of vehicles, adoption of cleaner fuels such as low sulphur diesel amongst other measures.
In brief remarks, Jane Akumu, of UN Environment pledged her organization’s commitment to the Government of Liberia in promoting clean energy in Liberia and disclosed that the UN Environment is collaborating with 20 countries in Africa including the ECOWAS region to develop baseline on fuel efficiency
Madam Akumu, citing the International Energy Agency noted that the transport sector constitutes approximately one-fifth of the global primary energy and continue to account for growth in oil consumption – adding that an adoption of cleaner fuel will therefore provide significant benefits to countries, especially in South Saharan Africa and contributes to improved energy security, economic development, and climate change mitigation.
Mr. Y. Bernard Koffi of the ECOWAS Commission in remarks noted that the Commission is collaborating with the United Nations Environment Program and several countries in the region to promote cleaner fuels.
The EPA hopes among other things that stakeholders and participants, following the event, will understand the fuel efficiency initiative, status of fuel economy, results of the baseline and understand their respective roles in the fuel efficiency initiative in Liberia; as well as present, analyze and discuss the Draft National policy Option/Framework on national fuel efficiency in Liberia.
The two-day gathering brought together several representatives from government ministries and agencies and non-governmental organizations including the Environmental Protection Agency, Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Ministry of Lands Mines and Energy, Ministry of Transport, the Liberia Revenue Authority, the United Nations and ECOWAS.
Professor James Nyaagaya of the University of Nairobi served as a guest facilitator.