WASHINGTON – Jamaica is to host the fifth Ministerial Meeting of the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA), scheduled to be held in 2019, the island’s ambassador to the United States and Permanent Representative to the Organisation of American States (OAS), Audrey Marks, has announced.
Addressing the ECPA third Ministerial Meeting in Chile last week, she said Jamaica is looking forward to the next two years of leading the work of the ECPA in partnership with the team at the Development Secretariat of the OAS.
“The region is rich in natural resources and we will seek to optimise this potential through various activities that will make the Americas a leader in the new energy paradigm,” the diplomat said, expressing confidence that Jamaica will also provide strong leadership of the organisation.
“I am very heartened by the expressions of support from the partners of this initiative at the United States Department of Energy and Department of State as well as the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and World Bank delegations.”
During the meeting in Chile, several countries made pledged support for the seven pillars of the ECPA that include promoting renewable energy; improving energy efficiency; making more efficient use of fossil fuels; creating energy infrastructure; reducing energy poverty; promoting regional energy integration; and developing energy research and innovation. (CMC)
