A recent study by the Rockefeller Foundation has shown that investing in distributed renewable energy systems could end energy poverty and create 25 million direct jobs and 500 million indirect jobs in the power sectors in Africa and Asia by 2030, IgbereTV reports.
Also, the report titled “Transforming A Billion Lives” stated that renewable energy can save four billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the study, the transformation could be achieved with an annual investment of $130 billion in distributed renewable energy systems.
Findings by the study revealed that the direct jobs in the power sector, would also create nearly 500 million new jobs in agriculture, health care, education, and small and medium-sized enterprises, and set in motion a green transition across energy-poor countries over the next decade.
The research, which was carried out by Catalyst Off-Grid Advisors and reviewed by IKEA Foundation, International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), International Solar Alliance (ISA), and Sustainable Energy for All, underlines how the economic and investment case has flipped in favor of renewable technologies.
Speaking on the study, The President of the Rockefeller Foundation, Dr Rajiv J. Shah, said the world is at a crossroads and fortunately, technological advances have given humanity the tools for transformative change.
He noted that for the first time in history, the world can address the climate crisis while empowering people with the jobs and electricity they need to care for their families, pursue opportunities, and thrive.
Shah maintained that we must now find the courage and resources to come together and change how the world works and how people live.
Remarking, CEO of IKEA Foundation, Per Heggenes noted that in the past decade, Distributed and Renewable Energy (DRE) technologies have been rapidly replacing fossil fuels as the most cost-effective building blocks for powering economic development.
