As part of its strategic vision to advance sustainable energy solutions for public and civil service and society institutions in Lebanon, UN-Habitat signed today, May 23, an Agreement of Cooperation with the Lebanese Centre for Energy Conservation (LCEC).
The cooperation aims to provide comprehensive technical support for the rollout of solar energy systems to enhance the operation and service delivery of various municipalities, unions of municipalities, social and health services centers and water facilities in Tripoli, Tyre Kaza, Zahle, Beirut, and Mount Lebanon.
LCEC will collaborate with UN-Habitat to assess the feasibility and efficiency of deploying solar energy systems in more than 20 pre-selected sites. Upon completion of a feasibility study undertaken by LCEC, shortlisted sites will have needs-based renewable energy interventions implemented. Furthermore, a joint national awareness-raising campaign will run in parallel, focusing on best practices for the selection, installation and maintenance of the systems. The campaign will also emphasize the importance of safety measures to be taken into consideration when installing solar energy systems.
Pierre El Khoury, the General Director and President of the Board at LCEC, said that “while sustainable energy is progressing rapidly in many sectors of the Lebanese economy, some sub-sectors are being left behind and kept in the dark. The importance of this partnership between UN-Habitat and LCEC is that it targets facilities from those unprivileged sub-sectors and supports them to join this green energy transition. Not only will this cooperation improve energy performance within those facilities, but it would also strengthen their role in the societal fabric toward robust, healthier, and safer urban environments. LCEC is so grateful to be able to contribute to this.”
For her part, Taina Christiansen, Head of UN-Habitat Lebanon, said, “Cities are major contributors to climate change – including in Lebanon. According to UN-Habitat, cities consume 78% of the world’s energy and produce more than 60% of greenhouse gas emissions. While Lebanon continues to suffer from a pronounced energy crisis, the sector of renewable energy has seen a remarkable leap in the past couple of years. UN-Habitat has embarked on many projects to address this crisis and through our partnership with LCEC, we will be supporting more public institutions and municipalities to embark on more green solutions for a better urban future.’’
Since its establishment, UN-Habitat Lebanon has effectively collaborated with partners and urban planning actors at the community, national and international levels to develop and implement programs and interventions across the country that contribute to making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
