UNIDO Director-General selected Chairman of UN-Energy

 

Vienna, 30 October 2007
UNIDO Director-General Kandeh K. Yumkella, was confirmed as the next Chairman of UN-Energy by the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB) during its meeting in New York on 26-27 October.

Mr. Yumkella's Chairmanship will commence on 1 January 2008. His selection as Chairman of this important inter-agency body comes at a time when energy-related issues are assuming a central place in the climate change agenda. As the first head of a UN specialized agency to become Chairman of UN-Energy, Mr. Yumkella hopes to bring greater dynamism into the work of this body and a higher level of engagement by its member organizations.

UN-Energy brings together senior officials and experts on energy from various organizations in the UN family: IAEA, FAO, UNIDO, UNESCO, WHO, WMO, World Bank, UNEP, UNDP, UNCTAD, UN-DESA, UN Habitat, UNFCCC Secretariat, UN Regional Commissions (ECA, ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP, ESCWA) and the UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women.

The chief purpose of UN-Energy is to help ensure a coordinated and coherent response by the UN system to the energy-related aspects of the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (JPOI) adopted at the 2003 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). It is also mandated to promote the effective engagement of non-UN stakeholders in advancing the energy-related decisions at the WSSD.

UN-Energy facilitates the sharing of information, knowledge, experiences and good practices on energy-related initiatives and activities in the UN system. It keeps an overview of ongoing and planned energy-related activities within the UN system and helps build and strengthen synergies among them. It also promotes common and complementary approaches to energy policy issues and coordinated support to intergovernmental bodies such as the UN Commission for Sustainable Development.

A recent publication of UN-Energy, Sustainable Bioenergy: A Framework for Decision Makers has attracted wide public interest.  It highlights key issues relating to bioenergy that require further attention and analysis so that the appropriate trade-offs can be made among the competing uses of food crops, so that the energy needs of people are met and the local and global environment are adequately protected. The next topic to be tackled in print by UN-Energy is Mainstreaming Energy Considerations into MDG-based National Development Strategies for Poverty Reduction.