France and the UAE: leading by example and unity of effort

Scientific research provides us with the certainty that the future of our planet and the global economy depend on implementing a low-carbon approach. We also know that around 1.6 billion people - and in particular Africans - lack access to energy and that global demand for energy could increase by 50 per cent by 2030. France, one of the very few countries in the world that has kept its commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, has chosen to be forward-looking and show by example, setting a goal for cutting its CO2 emissions by four times by 2050. To this end, our country has defined a new strategy widely known in France as the "Grenelle Environnement". This strategy includes plans to reduce energy consumption and have renewable energies represent 23 per cent of France's energy mix by 2020.

For more than two years, France has invested massively in a new growth model - green growth based on low-carbon - and promoting renewable energy. In France, 100,000 old apartments and houses will be weatherised in just two years. All new buildings will be so-called "low-consumption" buildings starting in 2013 and "positive-energy" starting in 2020. Further efforts include investments in the use of biomass as an energy source, the establishment of a "renewable heat fund", the construction of at least one solar plant per administrative region by 2011 and funding for geothermal programmes. Results are already being felt. Between the first half of 2008 and the first half of 2009, grid connections have gone up 265 per cent from sources of solar energy alone. If this trend continues, we could achieve a doubling of our annual renewable energy production over 12 years, equivalent to the energy supplied by 20 million tonnes of oil.

We are not alone in believing in green growth. With its "Climate and Energy package" (adopted under the French Presidency of the European Union), the EU has set three main objectives for itself by 2020: cutting its CO2 emissions by 20 per cent, lowering its energy consumption by 20 per cent, and raising the proportion of renewable sources of energy in the final energy mix to 20 per cent. The historic agreement reached in Copenhagen in December 2009 also represents a major stepping stone. For the first time, the world's largest countries, including the US, China, India and Brazil, have embarked on a joint process to fight climate change. And also for the first time, all heads of state and government have agreed to keep the temperature rise under 2°C, a threshold beyond which the world would face a period of great uncertainty. Industrialised countries have pledged financial support for vulnerable countries, in particular by helping them harness the potential of renewable sources of energy. And indeed, I firmly believe that Africa has enough resources to allow it to become the first energy self-sufficient continent in history, thanks to renewable energy.

Whether developed or developing, industrialised or agricultural, whether they import or export fossil fuels, our countries face the same reality. Economic growth will, to a large extent, depend on the development of renewable energy, whether it plays a primary or a complementary role in a country's energy mix. In this context, the United Arab Emirates' commitment to sustainable development should be viewed as a major turning point. Since it ratified the Kyoto Protocol in 2005, the UAE has multiplied its initiatives. These have included across-the-board implementation of international building and energy efficiency standards and planning to increase the share of energy it receives from renewable sources to seven per cent by 2020. Construction of the first-ever zero-carbon city, industrial projects that include a solar thermal plant and a photovoltaic cell manufacturing unit and organisation of the World Future Energy Summit, all demonstrate the UAE's commitment. One of the world's major oil-producing countries has turned into a global centre for co-operating and experimenting in the field of renewable energy.

It is no coincidence then that the UAE's offer to host the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) was met with such enthusiasm by Irena's member states last year. I see this as a token of deserved recognition and great promise for the future. I also believe that the appointment of a Frenchwoman, Hélène Pelosse, as Irena's director general will offer us a chance to deepen our cultural, scientific and economic exchanges around a key component of fighting climate change. I have come to appreciate her energy, dynamism and dedication to a cause that will play a crucial part in shaping our future.

Until then, our two countries are united in the worthiest of all projects: ensuring that each of the world's nations, regions and communities has equal access to energy at all times, an essential prerequisite to development. Jean-Louis Borloo is the French minister for ecology, energy and sustainable development