As part of its efforts to advance Low Carbon Development in the ECOWAS region and contribute to the sustainable economic, social and environmental development of West Africa, ECREEE has joined the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN).

The CTCN is the operational arm of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)’s Technology Mechanism and was established under the COP 16 to facilitate the transfer of technologies through three core services:

• Providing Technical assistance at the request of developing countries to accelerate the transfer of climate technologies
• Creating access to information and knowledge on climate technologies
• Fostering collaboration among climate technology stakeholders via the Centre’s network of regional and sectoral experts from academia, the private sector, and public and research institutions

CTCN is currently being hosted by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and with the support of 11 independent organizations with expertise in climate technologies.

The overarching mission of the CTCN is to assist developing countries in deploying technologies which include equipment, techniques, practical knowledge and skills that can be used to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to climate change impacts.

As part of being a member of the network, ECREEE supported the CTCN to organize two regional workshops for the National Designated Entities- NDEs in the African region. National designated Entities are representatives of developing Countries that are party to the UNFCCC. They serve as national entities for the development and transfer of technologies and also act as focal points for interacting with the Climate Technology Centre on country specific technology needs. The CTCN is mandated by the COP to provide technical assistance to developing countries at their requests, through their NDEs.

The regional Forums for National Designated Entities were conducted in parallel, one in Dakar, Senegal, for the French-speaking African countries, and the other in Arusha, Tanzania, for English-speaking African countries from the 24th-26^th of June 2015.

Both workshops sought to develop and strengthen the regional network of NDEs and their relationship with key financial institutions, regional Consortium Partners, current and potential Climate Technology Network members.

The regional forums also provided the opportunity for NDEs in the region to share country level experiences on setting up NDEs in various countries, the use of CTCN technical assistance, as well as other CTCN services.

The regional forums also facilitated linkages between CTCN technical assistance and other financial mechanisms, financial and institutions relevant to climate technologies.

Apart from the various Membership Benefits that include:

• Commercial opportunities: Pre-qualified access to competitive bidding for delivery of CTCN technical assistance services to developing countries
• Connection: Network with national decision makers, thought leaders, and other Network members to expand your partnership opportunities and learn about emerging activities and areas of practice
• Visibility: Increase your global recognition and showcase your organization’s experience and success stories Broaden your organization or company’s global reach by engaging in new technology projects and showcasing relevant experience, events, reports and tools

For ECREEE becoming a network member of the CTCN reinforces its capacity to support the ECOWAS countries in their quest to address the interrelated challenges of energy access; energy security and climate change simultaneously through the transfer of environmentally sound low carbon technologies.

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