A MEETING aimed at promoting the use of renewable energy technologies in schools was held at Grand Plaza Parkroyal Hotel on December 28.

The meeting was part of a six-month project initiated last October by the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) to study the application of renewable energy in the education sector.

The Minister of Energy, Brigadier-General Lun Thi, said in his opening address at the meeting that the project would promote sustainable energy use and would increase access to education by bringing power supplies to more remote schools.

The meeting was organised the Ministry of Energy in collaboration with the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation of Japan and the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) of India.

Brigadier-General Lun Thi said in his address that the world’s energy resources, especially fossil fuel, were being exploited at an alarming rate, causing environmental degradation and leading to price increases that affected the economies of many nations around the world.

“Renewable energy has emerged as a source of energy which is clean, sustainable and will support sustainable goals and objectives,” he said.

He said the BIMSTEC project was an important step in attaining these goals among the seven member countries, which include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Ms Parimita Mohanty, a research associate from TERI, said at the meeting that the project would contribute to the improvement of education services and infrastructure, and to the elimination of poverty, among member countries.

“Basically we want to mature the education services across the countries,” she said, adding that many schools in the region did not have access to modern energy sources.

“Using renewable energy technologies is one way to increase access to energy,” Ms Mohanty said.

She said the purpose of the Yangon meeting was to collect information on ways to proceed with the project, after which implementation models could be developed.

The project will culminate in a meeting in New Delhi to present and consolidate the findings from each member country, Ms Mohanty said.