Press Release

Global Solar Council’s 2nd Virtual Forum goes live on 8-9 July

Last days to register for thematic and matchmaking sessions to understand how solar PV is making a green recovery a reality and enabling sustainable development

Day 2 brings a special focus on solar PV in Sub-Saharan Africa

July 5, 2021 – The Global Solar Council is holding its Virtual Forum 2021 on 8 and 9 July – in cooperation with SolarPower Europe – to engage industry stakeholders and international experts on the main challenges and opportunities for the solar market to assist green recovery and sustainable development, to share best practices and create opportunities for networking and capacity building. The event will be a unique chance to analyze the main barriers still hampering solar PV’s full deployment and identify the most effective policies and financing mechanisms.

The two-day online event will showcase the enormous potential of solar power to bring about a clean, fair and sustainable future and enable quality employment in all regions of the world - from cities to rural communities, from developed to developing countries. The sessions will bring together speakers including Ajay Mathur, Director General of the International Solar Alliance (ISA); Ulrike Lehr, Head of the Policy Unit at the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA); Paolo Frankl, Head of Renewable Energy Division at the International Energy Agency (IEA); Hans-Josef Fell, President of the Energy Watch Group, as well as worldwide members and partners of the Global Solar Council. Highlighting finance’s pivotal role for PV, experts will join from the European Investment Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, and the African Development Bank. Francesco La Camera, IRENA Director General, will also offer his input via a video message.

See the full, two-day agenda:

See the agenda

Through a series of thematic and matchmaking sessions, international institutions, industry associations and other stakeholders of the solar sector will analyze the integrated actions needed to take up solar PV’s unique opportunity to power a green recovery, accelerate decarbonization trajectories and enable progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. During the first day of the event, the GSC Forum will explore how locally and globally – from single households and small businesses all the way up to industrial sectors – investing in solar brings benefits for People, Prosperity and the Planet thanks to a “ripple effect” that fans out to employment, health, gender equality and poverty alleviation. Pricing, permitting and policies for a global decarbonization sprint will be explored to increase large-scale plants as well as distributed systems in developed and developing countries. Informed insights will also be offered by moderators of the caliber of BloombergNEF.

On the second day of the event - supported by GET.invest - the focus will move to Sub-Saharan Africa and the potential of solar PV deployment at all scales in the area. The Forum will take a close look at policies, incentive schemes, multi-sector synergies, and solar PV’s role in sustainable development addressing the issue of access to power and providing a critical assist for better governance. Numerous representatives of African associations that are part of the GSC Africa Task Force will deep dive into the progress countries are making and the major challenges they are still facing in deploying grid as well as off-grid PV solutions, providing the most accurate outlook possible. Women’s fundamental role for development will also be in the spotlight thanks to the participation of African Women in Electricity and Power.