Introduction

This three phase designed project is structured to reduce carbon emissions by gradually introducing new energy sources and launching an intensive public campaign and education against carbon emissions.  The project is committed to realizing key activities that will empower communities across West African to use renewable sources of energy and to live low carbon lives. 

The project will set up community bio and wind energy stations that will be managed by beneficiary communities with an oversight responsibility from wAi Africa’s specialized community representative. We will also work with governments, businesses and skilled individuals across West Africa to ensure that energy driven machineries, products and lifestyles are based on low carbon technologies.

Instant Carbon Emission Reduction

-          Selling and distributing low carbon products

-          Ensuring that clients have accessibility to carbon free products

-          Monitoring and evaluation

Establishment of Functional Bio or Wind Energy Stations in Communities

Activities

-          Extensive research on all sources of renewable energy relevant to specific countries.  

-          Validation meetings with project stakeholders.  

-          Identification and building of capacities of communities to construct bio and wind energy stations  

-          Endorsement of detailed project activities by project stakeholders.

-          Commencement of project activity.  

-          Commissioning and use

-          Monitoring and evaluation

Policy Formulation on Carbon Emissions

Activities

-          Extensive research on all machineries and activities with high and low carbon emissions

-          Validation meeting with all energy users and security agencies of governments.  

-          Meetings to commence the drafting of the policy

-          Engagement with legislators

-          Engagement with the media, educational sector, security agencies and other key allies like the ECOWAS and other international organizations.

-          Final policy draft

-          Enactment into a law

-          Monitoring and Evaluation

Changing Life Styles, Attitudes and Public Education   

Activities

-          Advocacy on how individuals can contribute to less carbon emissions

-          Monitoring and evaluation

Implementation:

WAi-Africa through its partnership arrangement with large membership groups such as churches, tertiary schools, Trade Unions, and government ministries will sell and distribute less carbon products to identifiable clients. A project management team will be established to oversee the entire project implementation.

wAi Africa will be the sole coordinating body. The management team will establish country hubs through which the products will be sold and distributed. The country hubs will implement three the phase of the project namely marketing and selling of low carbon products, enactment of national policy on carbon emissions and public education.

We are convinced that this implementation strategy will yield concrete results because we will not only be making people aware of the dangers of carbon emissions, but we are also offering practical options to take action as we support governments to enact a policy to compel its agencies and the citizenry to adopt life styles that will significantly reduce carbon emissions.

5 Year Achievable Project Objectives:

-          To reduce domestic carbon emissions by 30% in West Africa.

-          To engage with industries to reduce 25% off their carbon emissions by implementing best practices on carbon usage.  

-          30% of West African governments to enact a national policy on carbon emissions.  

-          50% of the population in West Africa will change their attitude towards carbon emissions and how to reduce it.

-          40% households in rural and semi urban West Africa use bio or wind energy. 

 Geographical Location and Specifics of the Project Area:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

In 2006, West Africa had around 300 million inhabitants representing 4.6% of the world’s population, 43 % of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa. West Africa is a socially and culturally very diverse region. Yet it shares commonalty among the francophone folks and the Anglophone folks. 

Key Partners

-          The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

-          The Private Sector

-          Individuals with specialized skills

-          Churches that cut across ECOWAS

-          Governments

-          Educational institutions

-          Membership based organizations

-          Media houses

-          School children