By Eric Appah Marfo
Accra, Oct. 27, GNA – African energy-efficiency experts have called for stronger cooperation and harmonised standards for cooling appliances to prevent importation of inefficient technologies and reduce growing pressure on electricity systems.
The experts said a coordinated approach involving national regulators, standards agencies, customs authorities and regional energy institutions was necessary to ensure that refrigerators and air conditioners entering African markets met agreed minimum energy-performance requirements.
They also said sustained cooperation, effective enforcement and the exchange of practical experiences would ensure that harmonised standards produced measurable improvements in the efficiency of cooling appliances entering African markets.
The call was made at a meeting in Accra involving representatives of regional energy-efficiency institutions and other stakeholders preparing to participate in a China-Africa standardisation conference scheduled for the second week of November in China.
Mr Kofi A. Agyarko, Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Shared Responsibility and Technology Ambition said African countries needed to speak with one voice when engaging manufacturers to secure access to modern, energy-efficient cooling technologies.
He said China supplied an estimated 80 to 90 per cent of cooling appliances to Africa, making engagement with manufacturers particularly important in efforts to improve product quality and energy performance.
Mr Agyarko said African countries should not receive appliances that failed to meet the standards applied in other markets, adding that a common position would strengthen their ability to influence manufacturers and suppliers.
He said the continent needed to prepare for a substantial increase in cooling demand, making energy efficiency an important consideration in decisions about appliance imports, electricity planning and environmental protection.
Mr Agyarko also highlighted the need for effective standards, consumer awareness and market interventions to encourage the adoption of better-performing products.
He said the Accra meeting brought together representatives from eight countries and was intended to strengthen cooperation among African energy-efficiency practitioners.
Mr Agyarko said plans were underway to establish an African Energy Efficiency Champions group that would meet at least annually to review progress, share experiences and encourage the implementation of energy-efficiency measures.
The initiative would begin as a pilot programme, with the possibility of expansion as participating countries advanced their commitments, he said.
Mr Readlay Makaliki, a Senior Technical Expert at the Southern African Development Community Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (SACREEE), said regional harmonisation was already providing a foundation for countries to improve the energy performance of appliances.
He said SACREEE, which served 16 Southern African countries, had worked with regional partners through a United Nations Industrial Development Organisation-supported programme to develop harmonised minimum energy-performance standards for lighting, refrigerators and air conditioners.
Mr Makaliki said the standards for lighting were developed in 2021, while those for household refrigerators and air conditioners were completed in November 2023.
He said most countries in the region had adopted the lighting standards nationally, although they were often voluntary, underscoring the need for countries to move beyond developing standards to ensure their effective implementation.
Mauritius, he said, made minimum energy-performance standards for air conditioners mandatory in March 2025, allowing a six-month grace period before enforcement began in September that year.
South Africa was expected to make the standards mandatory by 2027, he added.
Mr Makaliki said SACREEE was interested in Ghana’s product-registration system, which could offer lessons for strengthening the implementation and monitoring of appliance standards in other countries.
He said sharing experiences among countries would help address gaps in implementation and support a more consistent approach to energy efficiency across regional markets.
Mr Hyacinth Elayo, Sustainable Energy Policy Officer at the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), said harmonised standards needed to be backed by effective enforcement and coordination among the institutions responsible for regulating products.
He said ECOWAS had been working with member states to develop minimum energy-performance standards for products, including refrigerators and lighting equipment.
However, he said the effectiveness of those measures depended on cooperation among energy regulators, national standards agencies and customs authorities to ensure that products entering markets complied with the applicable requirements.
Mr Elayo said border surveillance, laboratory testing, and market monitoring were critical to identifying substandard equipment and preventing its circulation.
He said enforcement mechanisms should also include appropriate penalties to discourage the importation and sale of products that failed to meet the required standards.
Mr Elayo said efforts to strengthen laboratory testing and market surveillance in the ECOWAS region were helping authorities identify and remove substandard equipment from markets.
He said improving energy efficiency was particularly important for African countries because of the continuing challenge of expanding electricity access while meeting growing demand.
More efficient appliances, he said, could help reduce unnecessary electricity consumption and allow countries to make better use of the power available to households and businesses.
GNA
Edited by Linda Asante Agyei
Reporter: Eric Appah Marfo