Alliance and BMZ Co-Host Bonn International Cooking Energy Forum
The Alliance and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) co-hosted a forum in Bonn to strengthen commitments and partnerships under the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, and further the adoption of clean cooking fuels and devices for 100 million households by 2020.
Dr. Friedrich Kitschelt, Director General for Africa and Latin America at BMZ and the Honorable Jürgen Nimptsch, Bonn’s Mayor, welcomed the 120 participants from government ministries, the private sector, investors and non-governmental organizations and provided opening remarks that set the tone for a productive three-day conference. Attendees from over two dozen countries explored areas such as clean cooking’s role in the UN’s Sustainable Energy for All initiative and heard the latest in health data from the sector presented by Dr. Maria Neira of the World Health Organization. During the second day of the conference, participants were given the choice of three all-day workshops to attend for focused discussion and debate on such topics as the role of the private and public sectors in meeting Alliance milestones, challenges in monitoring and evaluation, and progress on standards and testing.
Participants came away from the Forum with a deeper understanding of the complexities of the household energy pollution issue and a better appreciation for the opportunities and benefits of clean cookstoves and fuels under the Alliance framework. German State Secretary and Alliance Advisory Council member Hans-Jürgen Beerfeltz gave a stirring speech to conclude the conference and reaffirmed Germany’s strong support for the Alliance.
The Alliance would like to give special thanks to our partners at GIZ for their hard work and collaboration in making the Bonn Forum a reality!