2023-06-22 13:02:36
One of the novelties in the financing of the ecological transition for the countries of the South is the International Solar Alliance: initiated in 2015, it is the first international organization based in India, and has nearly 100 member countries. Its objective: to help developing countries gain easier access to this renewable energy.
Published on: 06/22/2023 – 13:02
From our correspondent in New Delhi,
Since it was founded here in New Delhi, the International Solar Alliance has developed different areas of expertise: the technical training of civil servants and bankers in southern countries, to help them adopt photovoltaics; aid for the development of solar mini-grids to provide electricity in remote areas. And above all, the main idea is to assist in the purchase of equipment by grouping calls for tenders, to lower prices.
And, this was achieved for the first time in 2019, when the Solar Alliance brought together calls from 22 countries in the South, mainly African countries, for the purchase of solar-powered water pumps: 270,000 pumps were thus offered in Benin, the DRC or Sudan, among others, at prices two times lower than before.
An institution far from the reality on the ground
However, this is a partial solution, because these countries do not necessarily have the budget to buy so many pumps at once, and even if they do, these pumps only represent 25% of the price of an irrigation network, and these countries must then find the funds to dig the wells, organize the distribution, etc. They usually don’t have that money, so they don’t buy those pumps.
On paper, the International Solar Alliance has lowered the price of the equipment, but this solution is disconnected from the reality of the countries. According to some actors in India, this is the major flaw of this institution, which tries to offer general solar solutions to groups of countries, while the problems are very different from one region to another, even from one village to another.
A promising project, however, was launched last year: it involves the creation of regional centers for training and certification of solar equipment. Three centers are under development, including one in Senegal. France, which is co-president of the Solar Alliance with India, last year granted support of one million euros for this project called Star.
The International Solar Alliance, a diplomatic tool for India
It is the first international organization based in India, and the government of Narendra Modi presents this as proof that his country is gaining greater influence in the international arena. The international solar alliance is also used by New Delhi to approach the countries of the South: some consider that it is even a weapon for promoting the Indian solar industries, which benefit greatly from this new influence of India in the sector, especially in Africa.
>> Read also: The Solar Alliance, India’s response to global warming
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