Photo 1. (left-right) The Cooperation Agreement signed by Dr. Nuki Agya Utama, Executive Director of ACE, and Dechen Tsering, Division Director of Climate Change Division at UNEP. 

Jakarta, 25 June 2024 – The ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) is proud to announce the signing of a cooperation agreement with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which aims at fostering energy efficiency and promoting gender mainstreaming in the energy policy with the ASEAN region. This signing was held together on 19 June 2024, followed by a webinar titled, “Advancing Energy Transition in ASEAN through Energy Efficiency and Gender-Responsive Policy.”

The agreement was signed by Dr. Nuki Agya Utama, Executive Director of ACE and Dechen Tsering, Division Director of Climate Change Division at UNEP. Both organisations are uniting to address climate change and support a just transition to low-carbon and resource-efficient economies. The partnership will also support the implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) Phase II: 2021-2025 and the APAEC Post 2025. 

Dr. Nuki Agya Utama, Executive Director of ACE, stated, “This cooperation agreement with UNEP underscores ACE’s commitment in advancing energy efficiency under APAEC programme area and promoting gender mainstreaming. By combining our specialties with UNEP, we can drive transformative change that goes beyond technical solutions. This partnership allows us to harness regional cooperation and knowledge sharing, which are essential for building resilient and sustainable energy systems.” 

Dechen Tsering, Division Director of Climate Change Division at UNEP, echoed this sentiment, stating, “The 13th ASEAN-United Nations (UN) Summit noted the importance of collaboration between the United Nations and ASEAN Centres, highlighting UNEP’s collaboration with ASEAN Centre of Energy (ACE) to promote renewable energy and energy efficiency. Our partnership will promote the incorporation of commitments and actions into countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to the Paris Agreement, to demonstrate a comprehensive approach to achieving countries’ climate goals, aligning with regional initiatives, and ensuring sustainable development. Furthermore, this collaboration will strengthen the transparency and accountability of climate action”.

ACE and UNEP’s United for Efficiency (U4E), the Cool Coalition, and the Sustainable Mobility Unit, will facilitate efforts in energy efficiency to achieve milestones under the Energy Efficiency & Conservation Programme Area. Additionally, EmPower: Women for Climate-Resilient Societies Phase II will [indirectly] support the Renewable Energy and Regional Energy and Policy Planning Programme Areas. 

ACE’s long-standing cooperation with UNEP will be strengthened, covering several areas, including advancing energy–efficient and sustainable cooling appliances and equipment, enhancing regional awareness on passive cooling and district cooling, cooperating on energy efficiency in the road transport, and progressing the recommendations from the ASEAN Renewable Energy-Gender Roadmap. Furthermore, this initiative will serve as a platform for paving the way towards a just and clean energy transition and enhancing energy security, accessibility, affordability, and sustainability in ASEAN. 

The webinar featured key speakers from ACE and UNEP who discussed current activities and future plans in this cooperation. The first panel, “Enhancing Energy Efficiency in Appliances, Cooling, and Transport in ASEAN” focused on achieving a more energy efficient and resilient future, through strengthening collaboration, improving energy efficiency standards for appliances, passive cooling strategies, and sustainable E-mobility technology. Followed by the second panel, “Advancing Sustainable Energy and Gender Inclusion in ASEAN,” focused on collaborative efforts in ASEAN’s energy transition and gender mainstreaming and gender just transition for climate resilience. 

Photo 2. Speakers at ACE-UNEP webinar, titled “Advancing Energy Transition in ASEAN through Energy Efficiency and Gender-Responsive Policy.” 

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About ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) 

Established on 1 January 1999, the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) is an intergovernmental organisation within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) structure that represents the 10 ASEAN Member States’ (AMS) interests in the energy sector. ACE supports the implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC), a blueprint for ASEAN energy sector. The Centre is guided by a Governing Council composed of Senior Officials on Energy from each AMS and a representative from the ASEAN Secretariat as an ex-officio member.   

The three key roles of ACE:  

• As a catalyst to unify and strengthen ASEAN energy cooperation and integration by implementing relevant capacity building programmes and projects to assist the AMS develop their energy sector.  

• As the ASEAN energy data centre and knowledge hub to provide a knowledge repository for the AMS.  

• As an ASEAN energy think tank to assist the AMS by identifying and surfacing innovative solutions for ASEAN’s energy challenges on policies, legal & regulatory frameworks and technologies.  

Keeping the region’s improvement, sustainable and harmless to the ecosystem is a fundamental concern of the ASEAN energy sector. Hosted by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of Indonesia, ACE’s office is located in Jakarta, Indonesia. For more information on ACE website: aseanenergy.org  

For further information, please contact: 
Rinda Rufaidah, Communications Specialist of ACE ([email protected])