In order to recognize those who have made particularly significant contributions to achieving all of the energy-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), about 60 organizations, including educational and corporate institutions and people, have been shortlisted.

These are SDGs 4 and 7, which both guarantee access to clean and affordable energy. SDG 4 provides inclusive and equitable quality education and promotes opportunities for lifelong learning for everyone.

The remaining SDGs are SDGs 13 (which aims to implement the UNFCCC promise to achieve a climate-neutral world by the middle of the century in order to minimize global warming) and SDG 14 (which focuses on conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas, and marine resources).

Special awards

A Technical Coordinator in charge of Energy Transition at the Ministry of Energy and Lead Judge for the awards, Dr Robert Sogbadji, at a press conference in Accra yesterday to outdoor the nominations said, there would also be lifetime awards and other special awards for most influential SDG leaders in Africa.

The awards would be in 17 category and it includes SDG Teaching and Learning Award, Energy Media Personality of the Year, SDG Financial Services Award, Green Sustainability Hospitality Facility of the Year, SDG Research Award and Energy Infrastructure Award.

Put together by “Think Energy awards”, and powered by the African Global Response Energy Environment (AGREE) Limited, with support from the SDG Advisory Unit of the Office of the President, the Ministry of Energy and Ghana Gas Company, the novel ceremony is aimed at celebrating excellence, innovation and impact of the respective individuals and organisations on clean energy, energy efficiency and energy access.

Dr Sogbadji said the award was timely to support all institutions and to identify them and encourage other institutions to put in efforts to identify the SDGs.

He said the organisers were allowing the public to vote 30 per cent while the judges would contribute 70 per cent to select the winners.

That, Dr Sogbadji explained, was to create much awareness about the SDGs for the public to know that the SDGs were still being pursued until 2030.

Awareness

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), of the African Global Response Energy Environment Limited, Humphrey Tetteh, explained that the awards would increase awareness about the efforts at achieving the seven SDGs including access to clean and affordable energy in the West African sub-region.

He said the event would serve as platform to recognise the efforts of individuals and corporate entities, who were making a difference in the quest to achieve the SDGs particularly those related to clean and efficient energy.

He said the vision of his outfit was to raise about $1million in the next three years to support winners of the awards to embark on projects aimed at shoring up efforts at attaining the energy-related SDGs and for that matter improving the energy sector in general.