As COVID-19 rapidly devastates communities and livelihoods, effective response measures are urgently needed to address the immediate as well as the longer-term impacts of the crisis. Over 100 leading players in renewable energy, gathered under the IRENA Coalition for Action, have come together in a joint call for action, putting forward concrete recommendations on how governments can ensure a rapid and sustained economic recovery that aligns with climate and sustainability objectives.

IRENA’s recent Global Renewables Outlook finds that aligning COVID-19 recovery efforts with the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will require comprehensive policy packages, massive resource mobilisation, and enhanced international cooperation, but would result in massive socio-economic gains at the global level.

During a webinar organised by IRENA, Coalition for Action members echoed these findings as they discussed solutions and concrete policy actions in response to COVID-19. Members further emphasised that renewable energy can play a key role in strategies addressing COVID-19 by providing reliable, easy-to-mobilise, and cost-effective electricity for essential services.

Coalition for Action Key Messages

In the development of immediate response measures to the COVID-19 emergency, Coalition for Action members are calling on governments to: 

• Revisit deadlines for renewable energy projects that face contractual obligations for near-term delivery.
• Designate the renewable energy industry and related infrastructure as a critical and essential sector. 
• Affirm and extend policies promoting renewable energy solutions, both centralised and decentralised.

In considering the stimulus packages needed for rapid and sustained economic recovery, Coalition for Action members recommend that governments:

• Prioritise renewable energy in any stimulus measures and commit to phasing out support for fossil fuels. 
• Provide public financial support to safeguard the industry and mobilise private investment in renewable energy. 
• Enhance the role of renewable energy in industrial policies.
• Revise labour and education policies to foster a just transition and help workers make the shift into renewable energy jobs.
• Strengthen international co-operation and action to accelerate renewable energy deployment in line with global climate and sustainability objectives.

The IRENA Coalition for Action brings together over 100 leading renewable energy players from around the world with the common goal of advancing the uptake of renewable energy. The Coalition facilitates global dialogues between public and private sectors to develop actions to increase the share of renewables in the global energy mix, and to accelerate the global energy transition. IRENA acts as the Secretariat of the Coalition.

Read more about the IRENA Coalition for Action and its joint call for action. https://coalition.irena.org/

KeyFacts Energy Industry Directory: IRENA