
4th December 2023
First Minister confirms clean energy investments for Malawi, Zambia and Rwanda.
New funding to provide clean and reliable energy in three African countries has been announced by First Minister Humza Yousaf at COP28.
Speaking at a Under2 Coalition General Assembly earlier today, the First Minister confirmed funding for two initiatives to provide affordable and clean energy through the Scottish Government's International Development Fund.
Operating theatre service KidsOR is to receive £324,900 for solar energy installation at 15 children’s operating theatres across Malawi, Zambia and Rwanda to provide a clean and reliable power supply, which will dramatically reduce hospital carbon emissions.
The Scottish Government will also provide £250,000 to enable financing of mini-grids to increase access to electricity in Zambia and help accelerate access to clean cooking methods in Rwanda through Sustainable Energy for All, an international organisation working in partnership with the UN with private and public sector support.
The First Minister said, "The Scottish Government is committed to playing its part as a good global citizen and helping to tackle global challenges like poverty, injustice and inequality.
"These initiatives illustrate what that means in practice - whether it is providing energy security to ensure that paediatric operations can reliably go ahead, or access to cleaner methods of cooking to reduce premature deaths from household air pollution.
“Malawi, Zambia and Rwanda are key partner countries for Scotland’s international development efforts. As a country that has long benefitted from the industrialisation which has contributed to the current climate crisis, it is only right that Scotland contributes its fair share to support countries that have been disproportionately impacted by its consequences, and ensure we can meet the aims of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals together."