The International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the European Union (EU) have signed a joint declaration for cooperation on solar energy. The declaration was inked at the 24th conference of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, held in Katowice, Poland.

The ISA is an Indian initiative that was jointly launched by Narendra Modi and the French president on November 30, 2015, in Paris, on the sidelines of COP21, the UN Climate Conference.

The Joint Declaration aims to deepen support of solar energy in the following areas:

• Develop synergies between EU and ISA programs and projects supporting access to electricity, clean energy transition, and the integration of renewable energy electricity
• Share knowledge and best practices through EU programs and projects with ISA member countries in the solar energy sector
• Work jointly towards mobilizing financing for the development and deployment of affordable solar energy on a global scale
• Support research and innovation in the area of solar electricity and the integration of distributed renewables
• Strengthen the development of ISA’s institutional capacity through support of the ISA’s Secretariat with technical assistance and knowledge transfer

“Joining efforts with the ISA will reinforce the EU’s position as a global leader in the clean energy transition. It will help us fulfil our reduction of greenhouse gas emissions objectives and implement the Paris Agreement. The ISA, because of its fast-growing number of member countries, constitutes a perfect platform to disseminate EU approaches, practices and technologies on solar energy success stories in and outside Europe,” said Miguel Arias Cañete, European Commissioner for Energy and Climate Action in a statement.

He added, “It will showcase European businesses leading in the solar energy sector and contribute to the efforts of internationalisation of our companies and to the Commission’s priority of growth and job creation. In this regard, I must also highlight the excellent cooperation with India in the area of clean energy and climate change, and in particular in the field of renewable energy.”

Both the parties have agreed to cooperate on a two-year rolling programme as well as hold annual meetings with senior officials.

Other agencies are also partnering with ISA to address the key challenges of scaling of solar energy in areas including finance, technology, innovation, research and capacity building.

Recently, the World Bank and Agence Française de Développement (AFD), France’s public development bank, announced that they are jointly working on a Solar Risk Mitigation Initiative (SRMI) to improve solar energy deployment in some of the world’s poorest countries.