ASIA’S ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT CHALLENGE
Asia has a critical need to transition to clean energy as quickly and efficiently as possible. Energy consumption in Asia’s fastest-growing economies is expected to rise by over 200 percent over the next 30 years. If Asia’s current heavy dependence on fossil fuels continues, the region’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are expected to increase by 300 percent over the next 30 years, with major implications for global climate change. Fossil fuel and biomass combustion also contribute to large regional hazes and acute local pollution in Asia, where 18 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities are located, creating serious threats to human health and development.

REGIONALLY INTEGRATED ACTIVITIES
USAID’s ECO-Asia CDCP takes a regional approach to its activities. By bringing together actors from across the region to share knowledge and best practices, the program accelerates the rate of learning, and helps countries develop effective and harmonized solutions to Asia’s common clean energy challenges. The program works in the following areas:

Expanding access to private financing for clean energy. USAID’s ECO-Asia CDCP carries out the activities in Asia of the Private Financing Advisory Network (PFAN), a global public-private partnership that matches innovative clean energy projects with sources of financing. A number of multi-million dollar projects in Asia have already attained financing through the PFAN process, each achieving a leverage ratio of 50:1 or more for USAID investments into PFAN.

Increasing the capacity of financial institutions. USAID’s ECO-Asia CDCP works with financial institutions operating in Asia to facilitate an increase in debt financing for clean energy projects and companies. The program provides banks with an integrated set of capacity-building tools and resources that can be customized for individual institutions or countries. These materials are designed to help financial institutions take advantage of the opportunities offered by renewable energy and energy-efficiency business models and projects.

Scaling up financing for energy-efficiency projects. The program is supporting the establishment of State-level Energy Conservation Funds in India to scale up the financing of energy efficiency projects. The program is also helping China’s Hebei Province design and launch a “Super-ESCO” (energy services company), while also supporting the scale-up of the province’s demand-side management (DSM) fund.

Building a regional dialogue and exchange on clean energy policy and regulation. The program brings together a wide range of stakeholders to identify, share, and address solutions to policy and regulatory barriers that inhibit investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Participants include policymakers, regulators, and representatives of civil society, as well as entrepreneurs, equipment and service providers, investors, and bankers.

Promoting energy-efficient lighting and regional lighting standards. Research conducted under the program has shown that up to half of the energy-saving compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) sold in Asia fail to meet minimum performance standards. To address this, the program has spearheaded the establishment of the Asia Lighting Compact (ALC), a public-private partnership of the world’s largest lighting manufacturers, regional lighting associations, and government agencies that is dedicated to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by improving the quality of lighting products and encouraging harmonization of lighting standards in Asia.

Building regional cooperation and knowledge-sharing. Since 2007, the program has partnered with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to organize the Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF), widely seen as the premier event in Asia for clean energy practitioners to share effective practices and present new findings. The program’s research and technical reports also help policymakers and donors in the region better target interventions and funding.

ABOUT ECO-ASIA CDCP
Since 2007, the USAID Environmental Cooperation-Asia Clean Development and Climate Program (ECO-Asia CDCP) has built partnerships to help put in place those clean energy technologies and practices that would most immediately help to address Asia’s energy challenges and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Key partners for the program include national policy institutions, utilities, energy ministries, state-level governments, banks, investors, and clean energy project developers. Active in six countries – China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam – ECO-Asia CDCP works with these partners to catalyze policy and finance solutions for clean energy through targeted assistance, training, regional cooperation, and knowledge-sharing.