The Activity Group 1 "Regional Forums/Workshops on Sustainable Modern Bioenergy" was led by the United States of America in cooperation with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on West Africa related activities. It was established in November 2011 to increase the capacity of developing countries to make the transition to the sustainable production and use of modern bioenergy, especially away from the traditional use of biomass.  Under the auspices of the GBEP Working Group on Capacity Building for Sustainable Bioenergy, it developed collaboratively with GBEP Partners and Observers a series of regional workshops and conferences to promote the sustainable production and use of modern bioenergy, assist countries in assessing their bioenergy resources including through geospatial imaging satellite technology, improve the productivity of bioenergy feedstocks through better agricultural practices, and increase the efficiency and output of bioenergy conversion processes. The Activity Group contributed to the development of the ECOWAS Regional Bioenergy Strategy Framework that was officially adopted at the 11th meeting of the ECOWAS Energy Ministers held in Accra, Republic of Ghana, on 31 October 2012. The Activity Group successfully concluded its work in December 2013. A final report of this activity was developed.

• Scope and programme of work
• Final report English - French - Portuguese

EVENTS

ECOWAS Regional Bioenergy Forum - Bamako (Mali), 19-21 March 2012

The Forum was held in collaboration with the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) to initiate a regional dialogue and peer-to-peer learning to support ECOWAS Member States in developing regional and national bioenergy strategies.These latter will help meet energy needs and create a vibrant and sustainable modern bioenergy sector that promotes economic growth, rural development, and poverty alleviation.

Working documents and outcomes

ECOWAS-GBEP workshop on Bioenergy Resource Assessment and Mapping - Rome (Italy), 13-14 November 2012

the workshop represents the follow-up to the Regional Forum held in Bamako on March 2012, where participants identified biomass resource assessment and mapping as an essential first step to initiate a regional dialogue to support the development of regional and national bioenergy strategies.In order to promote biomass resource mapping in the ECOWAS region the workshop included discussions of the following technical topics:

1) Methodological framework for resource assessment and mapping of environmental, social and economic resources, and calculations of total available biomass; and
2) Cataloguing and sharing experiences to date related to biomass use, existing resource maps, and socio-economic conditions, including methods for the allocation and tenure of land.

Working documents and outcomes

Activity Group 1 and 3 - Study Tour for Capacity Building "Bioenergy Week" - Brasilia (Brazil), 18-23 March 2013

The Bioenergy Week was organized with the support of the Government of Brazil, the Government of the United States of America, and the Organization of American States (OAS). It aimed at fostering sustainable bioenergy deployment, particularly in developing countries where biomass use is prevalent. It  consisted of sessions with specific themes of sustainable production and use of bioenergy, where effective policy frameworks were discussed, taking into account the GBEP work on sustainability indicators. The event aimed at fostering exchange of information, experience, skills and technologies through bilateral and multilateral collaboration.

Working documents and outcomes