Working Paper 304

AFREPREN/FWD General Assembly 2000 Proceedings

Compiled by

AFREPREN/FWD Secretariat

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The African Energy Policy Research Network (AFERPREN) is a regional organisation with the key objective of strengthening the continents research capacity and harnessing it in the service of energy policy making and planning. It is a collective regional response to the wide-spread link between energy research and the formulation and implementation of energy policy in Africa.

The 1999-2002 AFREPREN/FWD Research Programme covers the following 4 broad themes:

• Renewables and Energy for Rural Development

Options for the provision of modern energy services to low-income rural areas of Africa with special emphasis on the commercial services/productive uses of energy.

• Energy Services for the Urban Poor

Initiatives for providing least-cost clean energy services to the urban poor households and small-scale enterprises.

• Energy Sector Reforms

The impact of reforms on the region’s power sector.

• Special Studies of Strategic Significance for Energy Sector Development in Eastern and Southern Africa:

New and emerging issues and trends on energy, energy investments and their implications for the African energy sector.

On 12^th-16^th November 2000, AFREPREN/FWD held its Annual General Assembly for its 3 core theme groups, i.e. Renewables and Energy for Rural Development, Energy Services for the Urban Poor, and Energy Sector Reform.  This assembly brought together all the principal researchers in these theme groups and a representative from AFREPREN/FWD’s principal sponsor, Sida/SAREC.

The objective of this assembly was to review the progress of the research programme, present the findings of AFREPREN/FWD’s research work, i.e. national and regional research reports, and to review AFREPREN/FWD’s key research priorities and methodologies for the year 2001.

Each principal researcher presented the findings of their study, and in addition highlighted any challenges they were facing in obtaining relevant data.  After each principal researcher’s presentation, the AFREPREN/FWD Secretariat staffers presented their review comments, which examined the structure and methodology of the research reports. In addition, the review comments identified areas that needed additional work and proposed how the research reports could be improved.

Parallel Theme Group Meetings were organised during the Assembly to address the following:

• Issues raised in the reviews of the 1^st draft reports,

• Identification of methodologies and data constraints faced in testing the short-term hypotheses and options for addressing these constraints,

• Review of the short-term work plan and setting of realistic targets for delivering the outputs,

• Review of the medium-term hypotheses and the associated methodologies,

• Work plans for the medium term study.

In addition, the groups proposed dates for the next theme group meetings.

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