United Nations: India is a “good example” as solar auctions have seen popularity amidst the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, UN chief Antonio Guterres said on Thursday.
Guterres made his statement while speaking to the International Energy Agency “Clean Energy Transition Summit. He urged the international community to cease all external financing of coal in the developing world.
“Coal has no place in COVID-19 recovery plans. Nations must commit to net-zero emissions by 2050 and submit more ambitious national climate plans before COP-26 next year,” he said.
“The seeds of change are there. Renewable energy is the only energy source expected to grow in 2020. Solar auctions have seen popularity amidst the height of the pandemic. India serves as a good example. Renewables offer three times more jobs than the fossil fuel industry,” Guterres said.
“We need to make our societies more resilient. We need green jobs and sustainable growth,” he said, adding that bailout support to sectors such as industry, aviation and shipping should be conditioned on alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
