We know that ramping up the use of renewable energy is vital in addressing South Africa’s energy crisis, but what about concerns regarding a just energy transition to avoid job losses? And will renewables provide solutions to other pressing matters such as the economy and environment? Roberto Vigotti, Secretary General of RES4Africa Foundation, answers with a resounding ‘yes’.
“Clean energy will expand Africa’s access to reliable, safe and affordable energy, ensure positive environmental benefits through the use of more sustainable solutions, and address Africa’s socio-economic challenges, for example, unemployment,” says Vigotti. “In addition, Africa’s GDP will witness an increase of up to 6.4% on average leading to 2050, thereby generating around 8 million jobs in the renewable energy industry.”
RES4Africa Foundation
RES4Africa Foundation is an independent non-profit organisation that functions as a bridge between Europe and Africa. It gathers a network of members from the clean energy sector on both continents and high-level international partnerships to create an enabling environment for scaling up investments to accelerate a just energy transition on the African continent.
Within the Foundation, the Southern Africa Programme works to support the region, to maximise its huge renewable energy potential through research and study dissemination, capacity-building programmes and stakeholder engagement. Its continued partnerships with local companies, industry associations, academia, government, and national and international organisations, bears testimony to the Foundation’s intention to continue working towards the best outcomes for South Africa.
Renewable solutions have the power to kick-start a positive multiplier effect, providing new opportunities for youth employment, since access to energy means new possibilities for entrepreneurial initiatives, safer urban and peri-urban environments, more rapid and cleaner cooking procedures, and more.
With Eskom’s ambitious coal plant decommissioning plan, RES4Africa strives to support South Africa’s efforts to implement a just energy transition which addresses the needs of workers and communities in former coal regions. To this end, the Foundation, in partnership with a range of local and international stakeholders, established the Re-skilling Lab.
Such an initiative focuses on laying the technical foundation for the establishment of a widespread training experience based on renewable skills in the Mpumalanga province.
The first aim of the project is to accelerate the mind-shift of the local community to a sustainable economy by preparing a skilled future workforce that is able to respond to the industry needs: young learners from technical colleges are the elective target.
Steps to achieve the new skills
To achieve this objective, the role of local existing training entities is crucial, and the collaboration with the TVET colleges is at the core of the project. As such, last year the Re-skilling Lab launched a pilot project in collaboration with Nkangala TVET College, near to Komati power station, the first coal plant decommissioned by Eskom.
The pilot has been designed to enhance the TVET’s technical expertise in energy and include actionable renewable-related skills programmes as part of its standard curriculum. The first phase of the project, ‘Training of Trainers’, focused on training 10 lecturers from five TVET campuses to deliver various renewable energy courses.
The second phase, currently in motion, is a formally accredited renewable energy skills programme, offered to learners enrolled in the college. The course includes practical lessons in a designated lab, with equipment – provided through RES4africa – that mirrors real-life working conditions.
Crucial to the success of the Re-skilling Lab is the employability of learners who have completed their training. For this reason, the Lab is working closely with renewable energy manufacturers and providers such as Enel Green Power to identify ideal skillsets and collaborate on work experience opportunities for the students.
Furthermore, entrepreneurial training focused on rooftop PV panel installation and maintenance for a future distributed generation scenario will be organised within the pilot with the wider community in mind.
“Re-skilling is one of the main keywords of South Africa’s endeavours towards fully sustainable energy systems”, notes Roberto Vigotti. “In the last decade, we have witnessed how crucial it is to have skilled, conscious and resilient human capital, especially in the fast-growing market of renewable energy.”
Conclusion
A systematic, well-planned and quick deployment of sustainable energy sources is Africa’s biggest chance to improve the living conditions of its population in a sustainable way, paving the road for a competitive and green future, providing skills and employment possibilities, and putting an end to the crippling energy crisis on the continent.
Photo by Nuno Marques on Unsplash
Relevant Agribook pages include “Renewable and alternative energy” and “Energy“.
