Scaling-up Renewables Use in Agriculture in Asia: Towards 2030 Agenda & Climate Goals

The agriculture is a major energy consumer in Asia. However, the current pattern of energy use is both unsustainable, owing to high dependence on fossil fuels and inefficient biomass use, and insufficient, due to poor access to energy in many developing countries where agriculture is the main source of livelihood.

From primary production, to processing and storage, to cooking, renewable energy solutions represent a crucial opportunity to meet energy needs with growing evidence of their use for various applications, including water pumping, processing, cold storage and clean cooking. However, scaling-up their use requires closer partnerships between sectors and a water-energy-food nexus thinking to ensure sustainability. Cross-sector policy making, tailored financing schemes, innovations in appliances, access to market measures and skills development are crucial aspects to accelerate renewables adoption in agriculture.

Alongside the ADB Asia Clean Energy Forum 2022, IRENA and UN FAO organised a side-event to discuss the important energy-agriculture linkages and on renewables-based approaches to jointly advance sectoral development goals aligned with climate mitigation and adaptation objectives in Asia.

The side-event convened practitioners and policy makers who lead existing programmes to share their experiences and lessons learnt, and highlighted key recommendations on how renewable energy solutions can be scaled-up in the agriculture sector in support of livelihoods while ensuring sustainability and maximizing socio-economic benefits.

IRENA also launched its Renewable energy for agriculture: Insights from Southeast Asia analysis which discusses the opportunity offered by renewables in the agriculture sector showcasing case studies including from Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Viet Nam.