Special Edition: ECPA Ministerial Meeting 2020

Fourth ECPA Ministerial

Montego Bay

The Fourth Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA) Ministerial Meeting will be held in Montego Bay, Jamaica, February 27 and 28, 2020.

The Ministry of Science, Energy and Technology (MSET), in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (MFAFT), is leading the effort for the hosting of this High-Level meeting, which is expected to see Energy Ministers from the thirty three (33) other member countries of ECPA and other regional dignitaries being present in Montego Bay for the two day event.

The Ministerial will be held under the theme “Energy Resilience and Investment Opportunities”. This Ministerial will foster public-private policy dialogue between business and government leaders in the Americas on priorities, challenges, and opportunities for economic growth and development. Discussions will be centred on issues relating to financial mechanisms for clean and renewable energy, investment opportunities in energy efficiency, electric mobility as well as strategies to increase private sector engagement in energy infrastructure development... Read more

Energy Resilience and Investment Opportunities

The Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA) will focus on “Energy Resilience and Investment Opportunities”—an apt theme at a time when countries around the region are striving to become more energy-secure and meet ambitious goals on renewables.

Take the host country, for example. Jamaica used to have an official target of producing 30% of its electricity from renewable energy by 2030, but as Prime Minister Andrew Holness put it, “I believe we can do better.” In late 2018, he announced a new target of 50%.

During the meeting other side events will take place. The OAS is organizing two of these events—one on joint efforts by the Central American countries and the Dominican Republic to develop a set of common energy efficiency standards for electric lighting products, and the other on the challenges of hardening infrastructure against natural disasters to ensure that critical systems can get back up and running as soon as possible... Read more

For more information on ECPA check 'A Decade-plus of Cooperation' and follow the IV Ministerial Meeting on twitter with the #ECPAJA2020 - Twitter @ecpamericas

Interesting Facts and Policy Developments on Resilient Energy Infrastructure

Resilient Energy Platform. The Resilient Energy Platform helps countries understand and plan for natural, technological, and human-caused power system threats. The provision of reliable, secure, and affordable electricity is essential to power economic growth and development. Power systems are at risk from an array of natural, human-caused, and technological threats, which can cause everything from power interruption to chronic undersupply of energy. That’s why it is critical for policymakers, planners, and system operators to safeguard their power systems from these threats by proactively planning for future needs and investing in resilient power systems.


To help countries plan for power sector resilience, the USAID-NREL Partnership developed the Resilient Energy Platform, which provides an expertly curated collection of training materials, tools, data, case studies and other publications to support decision makers in assessing power sector vulnerabilities, identifying resilience solutions, and making informed decisions to enhance power sector resilience at all scales... Read more

Download the REP's Power Sector Resilience Planning Guidebook

Urban Resilience: Strengthening Survival Skills. Natural disasters can hit anywhere—not just in cities—but the human impact can be especially severe in high-population areas. That has serious implications for Latin America and the Caribbean, where an estimated 80% of people live in urban areas.

The Ministerial Dialogue on Urban Resilience, held on November 5, covered a range of issues, from technical to social, that come into play with disasters. Three of the speakers were from the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which studies disaster resilience from various angles. Experts from Chile, Colombia, and Saint Lucia also participated. (A video of the event, along with each panelist’s presentation, can be found here.)

One central message: It’s more economical and effective to prevent than to rebuild. Panelist María Benítez, Deputy Director for Risk Reduction at Colombia’s National Unit for Disaster Risk Management, put it this way: “The best time to save a life is before a disaster happens.”... Read more

ECPA's Past Initiatives. Energy Infrastructure: Foster modernized, integrated, and more resilient energy infrastructure through disaster risk management, among other strategies... Read more