With 2.4 billion people world-wide still lacking access to modern energy services, and one quarter of the world's population still living without electricity, a UN panel on Wednesday focused on improving access to reliable, affordable and economically sound energy services.
At its current session, the Commission on Sustainable Development is reviewing progress in meeting the goals and targets of Agenda 21. A comprehensive blueprint for action adopted by world leaders at the 1992 Earth Summit - and the outcome of the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in the area of energy, industrial development, air pollution and climate change.
Pakistan told the commission of the prevailing energy scarcity and the inability of its present energy generation capacity from the installed power plants to meet its energy requirements. "Almost 50 per cent of the population in the country has no access to this amenity," Pakistan's Additional Foreign Secretary Iftikhar Arain said.
The government, he said had taken initiatives to provide lighting facilities to all parts of the country. "But this initiative of the government is turning up to be a burden over present power generating units, as this will increase energy demand of the country and will require that more power generation plants should be installed to meet near future energy demands of the country."
To meet the situation, Pakistan is turning to renewable alternate energy sources. Plans to ensure involvement of both private and public sector in overcoming the obstacles to wider dissemination of renewable energy sources in coming years have been put in place, the Pakistan delegate said.