The ECOWAS Commission has held, on 15 and 16 April 2021, a validation workshop on the data collection report which will form the basis for the development of an updated ECOWAS Regional Energy Policy. The event which took the form of a virtual zoom meeting was organized by ECOWAS Directorate of Energy and Mines and had in attendance representatives of the European Union, UEMOA, OMVG, Ministries of Energy from the ECOWAS Member States, ECOWAS Specialized Agencies in charge of energy and NTU International, the consulting firm in charge of the assignment.
In his opening speech, Mr. Sédiko Douka, the Commissioner for Energy and Mines underscored the importance of the validation workshop. He said that the existing ECOWAS Energy Policy was developed and adopted in 1982 by Decision A/DEC.3/5/82 of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government. He further said that relevant issues make it necessary to update and revise this policy to better respond to the evolving challenges in the sector.
Speaking at the opening session, Ms Anastasia Oikonomou, Infrastructure, Transport and Energy Programme Officer of the European Union Delegation in Nigeria, thanked ECOWAS Commission for organizing the workshop and welcomed participants to the event. She reiterated that the AGOSE-AO programme was a unique example of the strong partnership that exists between the European Union and the ECOWAS Commission. She furthered opined that the EU will continue to assist ECOWAS in achieving greater access to energy for the people of the region through the sustained promotion of renewable energy.
The Director of Energy and Mines at the ECOWAS Commission, Mr Bayaornibè Dabire, in his welcoming speech, indicated that the workshop was necessary to validate the data collected by the consultant and make sure there are accurate for the purpose of the study. He thanked the EU Delegation for their support to the Energy Sector of the sub-region through intervention programme like AGOSE-AO through which the current study has been set up as a priority.
After the opening speeches, the workshop devolved into technical sessions through the Analysis of the data collection report and a cross-sectional review analysis of the data collected. Following in-depth discussions, the Experts noted that the data already collected form an adequate baseline to prepare the draft analytical report and the policy document. They therefore validated the draft data collection report with some amendments and urged the Consultant to recontact as soon as possible the Member states Focal Points and ECOWAS to obtain the additional data required.
In closing the meeting, the Chairman of the meeting Mr Stephen Nadu Ghana Representative, and the Director of Energy and Mines of ECOWAS Commission expressed their thanks to the Member States Experts for their active participation in the work and for the quality of their interventions during the exchanges. They also thanked the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, UEMOA, ECOWAS Energy Agencies/Institutions, NTU International Technical Assistance Team, as well as the regional and sub-regional institutions for their significant contribution to the meeting.