ALP Exchange Forum Supports COP28 Efforts to Facilitate Energy Transition, Climate Actions Towards Net Zero

Opening ceremony of the 2023 Exchange Forum on Asia LEDS Strategic Partnership.

Photo credit: Ministry of Economic Affairs, Chinese Taipei

The fourth Exchange Forum on Asia LEDS Partnership (ALP), held on October 22, 2023, echoed the upcoming 28^th Conference of the Parties’ efforts to strengthen the global decarbonisation process.

Organised by Chinese Taipei’s Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), the hybrid event was attended by around 150 people, including the interested public, relevant professional representatives, experts from the ALP network, MOEA, and industries in Chinese Taipei, who shared their observations on the challenges and opportunities in facilitating the energy transition and net-zero ecosystem in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

In his opening speech, Mr. Wu Chih-Wei, Deputy Director-General of the Energy Administration, MOEA, stated that Chinese Taipei has been actively promoting net-zero and the energy transition to meet the constantly changing demands of the global socio-economic environment. 

A spokesperson of the Executive Yuan Dr. Yuan Tzu-Leun Lin stressed the importance of peer learning and knowledge exchange with stakeholders and international peers, and maintaining continuous support from key international partners such as the ALP in this endeavor.

Representing one of the fastest-growing economies in the APAC region, Director-General Manharsinh Laxmanbhai Yadav of the India-Taipei Association also expressed India's commitment to net-zero and combating climate change, and the expectation that cooperation between Chinese Taipei and India in low-carbon and net-zero transition efforts would be expanded.

Mr Emani Kumar, Secretary-General of ALP and Deputy Secretary-General of ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, shared ALP’s recent initiatives in building low-carbon capacity and ICLEI's efforts in net-zero carbon reduction in the APAC region. These include specific actions at the national and local levels in areas such as energy transition, clean transportation, low-carbon action, and climate adaptation.

In the "Sustainable Energy Planning" session, Mr Wu from the Energy Administration, Mr. Shah Zulfiqar Haider, CEO, Engineering Management and Infrastructure Consulting Company, and Dr. James Wang, Vice President, Industrial Technology Research Institute, shared their views of the net zero implications, along with case stories, technological innovations, and pilot strategies in energy transition in both Chinese Taipei and the broader Asia region.

In the session on "Net-Zero Driving Green Growth," Mr. Balasubramanian V S, Joint Director, Bankers Institute of Rural Development – National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, and Dr. Je-Liang Liou, Director, Centre for Green Economy, Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER), Taipei, shared their observations on the development of carbon credits, carbon voluntary offset programmes and the carbon market in India and Chinese Taipei, respectively.

Representatives from Chinese Taipei's net-zero industries also spoke on the challenges and prospects of the country’s move towards a zero-carbon economy, and emphasised the importance of echoing SDG17 on public-private partnerships by building a low-carbon ecosystem and APAC-level partnership.

The ALP serves as a regional platform aimed at promoting low-emission development in the APAC region through capacity building and knowledge exchange. 

Access a video recording of 2023 ALP Exchange Forum here: https://youtube.com/live/kngUOUstYbY?feature=share