麻豆APP

Excellencies,
Distinguished Colleagues, 

It is a pleasure to join you for this important side event. 

I thank GEIDCO and all partners for bringing us together and I deeply value the strong and productive partnership we have built over the years. 

This year’s Vienna International Energy and Climate Forum comes at a decisive moment. 

Rising geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, and conflicts have underscored the fragility of traditional energy systems.

At the same time, worsening climate impacts are intensifying the urgency of advancing a just and equitable energy transition.

Clean and affordable energy is no longer just a sectoral issue.

It is a strategic pillar of global stability, economic competitiveness, and climate action.
Yet for the 92 most vulnerable countries of the world- the LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS, progress remains far too slow. 

In 2023, electricity access stood at just 59 percent of people in the Least Developed Countries, 61 percent in Landlocked Developing Countries, and 77 percent in Small Island Developing States. 

Access to clean cooking is even lower - just 21 percent in LDCs and 28 percent in LLDCs - with profound consequences for health and the environment.

These are not just numbers.

They reflect stark realities : millions of people are remain locked out of   basic opportunities for health, safety, and dignity.

They also send a clear message:  we will not achieve  SDG7, nor deliver on the Doha Programme of Action for LDCs, the Awaza Programme of Action for LLDCs, and the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS, unless we significantly scale up support for the energy transition in the world’s most vulnerable countries.
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We have a shared responsibility to the 1.4 billion people living in these countries - and to the commitments we have made - to ensure that they are fully supported in the global energy transition.

Excellencies,

Allow me to highlight three priorities to accelerate progress:

First, we must close the capacity gap. 

Sustainable energy transitions depend on skilled human resources, strong institutions, and effective planning. 

Capacity-building must be long-term, demand-driven, and aligned with national priorities.

Second, we must strengthen standards and quality infrastructure.

As countries adopt decentralized renewables and digitalized systems, robust technical standards are essential to ensure reliability, compatibility, and resilience.

Third, we must unlock finance at scale.
While public finance for clean energy in developing countries reached US$ 21.6 billion in 2023, only US$ 3 billion went to LDCs. 

This must change.

We need more concessional finance, better risk-sharing tools, and stronger support to develop investment-ready projects for the most vulnerable countries.

South–South and triangular cooperation can further support both financing and the exchange of practical solutions.

Excellencies,

The energy transition will be shaped by the choices we make today. Those choices must be inclusive from the outset.

For LDCs, LLDCs, and SIDS, clean energy is not only about reducing emissions - it is about access, affordability, resilience, and opportunity.    

Let us act with urgency and solidarity to ensure that no country is left behind due to structural constraints or limited capacity.

That must remain our shared commitment.
I thank you.