8th CARICOM Energy Month focuses on Powering Transport

November 1, 2023, marks the start of the eighth CARICOM Energy Month 2023 (CEM 2023), which aims to showcase and celebrate the sustainable energy achievements of the Caribbean region. To mark the month, a series of activities is being staged by The Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (CCREEE) in collaboration with the CARICOM Secretariat and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), with support from the Inter-American Development Bank and the Government of Canada.

The theme of CEM this year is Accelerating Innovation - Driving Electrification. Head of Technical Programmes, The CCREEE, Dr. Devon Gardner, said that the theme reinforces the importance of innovation within the energy sector and in the fast-paced electrification market, as well as innovation’s crucial role in adapting existing tools and technologies to keep up with the changing landscape. He stressed the importance of CEM and the coming together of Caribbean countries to support the energy transition. “The CCREEE was established to help implement sustainable energy in the region. In this regard, it's expected to assist the member states in transitioning to low carbon secure and resilient energy futures and to transform the energy sector system in the region from dependence on oil-based fuels to one that is dependent on many of the indigenous renewable resources that we have available at our disposal.” He also added that having the region adopt the electric vehicle revolution is an important step in the energy transition.

Coordinator of Sustainable Energy at the CDB, Mr. Joseph Williams, added that CEM is an important platform for the engagement of the citizenry.

“The CEM provides an opportunity for galvanising actions of critical stakeholders to accelerate the pace of the Region’s energy transition with innovative and inclusive approaches,” said Mr. Williams.

The flagship event for CEM 2023 is the Eighth Caribbean Sustainable Energy Conference (CSEF 8), being staged in collaboration with New Energy Events at the AC Hotel Marriott, Kingston, Jamaica, from November 7-9 under the theme Powering Transport. CSEF 8 is a three-day in-person regional forum that will convene stakeholders from across the CARICOM region, along with international experts and thought-leaders, to discuss realistic and practical opportunities, pathways, and approaches to innovatively manage an accelerated transition to sustainable energy use within the transport sector. 

There will be a significant focus on e-mobility options and opportunities, which will be highlighted during a public exhibit of electric vehicles dubbed EV-Lution.  

Other CEM events include:

• Caribbean Energy Investment Summit (CEIS), Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Bridgetown, Barbados - November 1-3: 
• Regional Universities Network (RUN) Mini-Symposium on EVs - November 10 
• CEM Kilo-Walk in Guyana - November 18 
• CARICOM W.I.S.E. (Women in Sustainable Energy) features - November 1-30  
• CEM Lecture Series - November 4 Barbados, November 9 Jamaica, Guyana November 16 and Trinidad & Tobago November 23  
• CEM Town Hall Series Jamaica - November 6

The CCREEE remains committed to achieving its mandate of accelerating the implementation of sustainable energy, given the energy poverty across the region.  CEM 2023 is one of the major tools being used to place energy high on the region’s development agenda.