The 19th ordinary session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) will convene in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 14 to 18 August, 2023 under the theme, ‘Seizing Opportunities and Enhancing Collaboration to Address Environmental Challenges in Africa’.

This year’s session will serve as a platform for delegates to provide policy guidance for the effective participation of Africa in upcoming key global environmental events, including the UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP28) in the United Arab Emirates. Delegates will also discuss Africa’s response to implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) adopted at the UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP 15).

Plastics have become a necessary evil in our lives to the extent that we cannot avoid using them. On the contrary, pollution arising from the growing plastic use is rapidly becoming one of the most pressing environmental threats to the people and the planet.

With over 6.5 billion tones circulating on the planet, plastic pollution has been found in every ecosystem, from the highest peaks to the deepest depths. Micro- and nano-plastic particles have also been observed in human placenta, blood, and breast milk, posing threats to human health due to the toxic additives in plastic products (IISD, 2023).

The energy sector in Kenya is largely dominated by biomass (68% of the national energy consumption), electricity (9%) and imported petroleum (21%), with biomass (wood fuel, charcoal, and agricultural waste) providing the basic cooking and heating energy needs of the rural communities, urban poor and the informal sector.

A recent paper titled: ‘On the History and Future of 100% Renewable Energy Systems Research’ published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE ) has indicated that renewable energy systems can power all energy in all regions of the world at low cost. As such, society will not need to rely on fossil fuels in the future. In the early 2020s, there is growing scientific consensus that renewable energy generated by solar panels and wind turbines and the associated infrastructure will dominate the future energy system, and new research increasingly shows that 100% renewable energy systems are not only feasible but also cost effective.

Uganda is endowed with abundant renewable energy sources including biomass, water, geothermal energy, sun and wind. What is required is to fully utilize this potential to make renewable energy a driver and shaper of the country’s economic transformation. Today’s skewed and heavy reliance on biomass as a key source of energy has a negative impact on both the environment and people’s health.

On Thursday January 12, 2023 members of the International Network for Sustainable Energy (INFORSE) in Uganda held a meeting attended by 8 out of the 10 members. The meeting updated members on INFORSE Uganda activities and the plan for the year 2023 as part of the global INFORSE Network. As such the meeting sought members’ input in the remaining period (January – March 2023) for the on-going plans and projects (The East African Civil Society for Sustainable Energy and Climate Action (EASE CA); and the INFORSE Synergies
Across Continents Project that seeks to bring together experiences from different  regions and strengthen INFORSE members as a training platform for promotion of local sustainable energy solutions).

UCSD and the International Network for Sustainable Development (INFORSE) as part of the East African Civil Society for Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Project (2019 -2022) have prepared Uganda's 100% Renewable Energy Scenario and Plan by 2050

The Plan provides a general overview of the Ugandan situation regarding energy supply and demand, and presents a scenario for how Uganda can move into a 100% renewable energy economy in 2050 and also move from a lower income country into an upper middle income country while sustainably harnessing its biomass resources along with other renewable energy sources.

In the Plan, a basic analysis of the current total energy demand and supply patterns for Uganda is shown. Secondly a renewable energy scenario; universal access to modern energy services by 2030 (Sustainable Energy For ALL) is elaborated. Thirdly, a course of action is proposed which outlines how Uganda can contribute to the Paris Agreement’s long-term temperature goal of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 through its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).

Within Uganda’s NDC, a focus on energy through introduction of improved biomass cook stoves and biogas is already highlighted. As part of securing a more ambitious NDC in line with the Paris Agreement, Uganda needs to take this to another level, through scaling up adoption of improved biomass cook stoves as well as their efficiency through Research and Development efforts.

The Plan underscores that for Uganda, achieving universal energy access is as important as achieving a 100% renewable energy production target. It also recognizes that to be sustainable, the renewable energy solutions presented must address poverty and other social needs as outlined in Agenda 2030 / Sustainable Development Goals.

In both the 100% renewable energy in 2050 and the BAU scenarios  developed with the INFORSE model and the Energy Plan model, fossil fuel in the form of oil continues to fuel the transport sector and increasingly the industry sector.  Another larger difference between the 100% renewable energy scenario and the BAU scenario is that in the 100% renewable energy scenario, 25% of cooking is made with highly efficient electric pressure cookers in 2050, which is not the case in the BAU scenario. While in the BAU scenario, CO2 emissions from fossil fuels (though small today) will continue to grow, in the 100% renewable energy scenario, they will gradually be reduced until 2050.

On December 22, 2022, Uganda Coalition for Sustainable Development (UCSD) virtually held its 8 th Annual General Meeting (AGM) that was attended by 22 members and partners. UCSD Chairperson – Ms. Sarah Kisolo regretted that the AGM was previously missed due to COVID 19 restrictions in 2019, and financial limitations afterwards in 2020 and 2021. This has necessitated UCSD to explore the online options. Hence the 8 th virtual AGM in 2022 was to catch up with the missed ones in 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Recently, Uganda through the Ministry of Water and Environment, submitted its Updated Nationally Determined Contributions with an ambitious economy-wide mitigation target of 24.7% reduction below the Business As Usual (BAU) in 2030, from the 22% reduction target communicated in the first NDC in 2016. Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) is a climate action plan to cut emissions and adapt to climate impacts. Each Party to the Paris Agreement is required to establish an NDC and update it every five years.