President Muizzu Calls for Greater International Support to Accelerate Maldives' Clean Energy Transition

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has said that greater international assistance is needed to accelerate efforts to transition to clean energy, stressing that concessional financing, technological opportunities and investment in energy infrastructure must be increased. The President made the remarks while speaking at the "High-Level Dialogue on Clean Energy Transition and Electrification: 35 by 35: Powering the Future" meeting held on the sidelines of the COP31 Leaders' Summit taking place in Antalya, Türkiye. Addressing the meeting, the President said the transition to clean energy is not merely an effort against climate change. He noted that it is also greatly important for ensuring the security of the Maldives' energy, protecting the country's economy, and supplying electricity reliably and without interruption. He also said that, as the Maldives relies very heavily on imported oil, reducing that reliance is among the matters given the highest national priority. Noting the target set in 2023 to generate 33 percent of the electricity used in the Maldives from renewable energy, the President said large investments are needed to reach that target. He noted that accordingly, large expenditure must be made to generate renewable energy and to establish energy storage systems in order to facilitate the use of that energy on a wide scale across the islands. In addition, the President noted that because the islands of the Maldives are geographically separated and formed individually, the cost of developing energy infrastructure and maintaining those facilities becomes extremely high. To overcome such difficulties, the Maldives has formulated and inaugurated the "Maldives Energy Sector Roadmap 2024-2033." The President said the roadmap is a strong framework formulated for the transition away from systems reliant on oil to a sustainable, low-cost and efficient renewable energy sector. Concluding his remarks, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said that efforts around the world to transition to clean energy will succeed only by implementing in practice the pledges that have been made. He also assured that the Maldives will always work to build a clean, efficient energy future, and said the Maldives stands ready to work together with international partners to reach this goal.