BAKU, 12 October 2009 - A two-day conference co-organized by the OSCE Office in Baku on "Renewable Energy - International Best-Practice and Prospects for the Development in Azerbaijan" started today. 

The main aim of the conference, which was organized in co-operation with the Ministry of Industry and Energy and the EU, is to give a comprehensive overview of the state of the renewable energy sector in Azerbaijan and to share international experience about the development of this sector with relevant actors.

"Renewable energy is more than just about environmental protection and it has far more positive implications, such as increasing the energy security of a country by reducing its dependency on exhaustible fossil fuels," said Ambassador Bilge Cankorel, the Head of OSCE Office in Baku, in his opening address. "Renewable energy has created hundred of thousands of jobs in the OSCE area and greatly contributes to economic development."

Azerbaijan has made development of the renewable energy sector a priority. It joined the newly established International Renewable Energy Agency and subsequently established a National Renewable Energy Agency by presidential decree in July. The government is also implementing the State Programme on the Use of Alternative and Renewable Energy Sources in the Azerbaijan 2005-2013.

The conference emphasises the importance of a favourable legal framework for the development of a successful renewable energy sector. It brings together representatives from relevant Azerbaijani government agencies, civil society organizations, the private sector and international organizations.