PRIVATE-sector firms in the Philippines and other countries in the Asia and the Pacific region can access a new technical assistance support for clean energy investments from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
In a briefing on Tuesday, the ADB said the agreement aims to mobilize $7 billion in technical assistance, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region, in the next five years.
The agreement was signed by ADB Strategy, Policy and Review Department Director General Tomoyuki Kimura and USAID Asia Bureau Acting Assistant Administrator Gloria D. Steele at the sidelines of the Asia Clean Energy Forum (Acef) at the ADB headquarters.
“This initiative is going to provide technical support services that will bring companies and businesses together. It will try to mobilize financing for projects in the energy sector. It will not provide loans but it will try to get companies to work together to mobilize resources to finance energy projects in various countries in the region,” Steele said.
The agreement aims to accelerate the transition to a more sustainable, secure, and market-driven energy sector in Asia and the Pacific. It will boost the capacity of clean energy systems by 6 gigawatts and increase regional energy trade by 10 percent over the next five years.
Kimura said the agreement is in line with the ADB’s Strategy 2030, which was finalized last year. The areas of focus of these energy projects include increasing energy access and deployment of advanced energy systems; improving performance of energy utilities; and enhancing regional integration and energy trade.
Steele added that the new partnership between the USAID and ADB is a first in the long years of cooperation between the two institutions. Kimura said USAID has partnered with ADB in efforts such as the conduct of the Acef since 2006 and in projects in the Coral Triangle Initiative.
“ADB welcomes the increased engagement by the USAID and the US government through its new Indo-Pacific strategy. And in particular, the energy sector through its EDGE [Enhancing Development and Growth through Energy] Initiative,” Kimura said.