The United Kingdom is the latest entrant to the International Solar Alliance (ISA), joining hands with India and 73 other member nations toward a common goal of sustainability.

The United Kingdom had confirmed its commitment to the ISA last month at the London Stock Exchange as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings. The proposed collaboration between the United Kingdom and ISA includes solar financing, developing next-generation solar technologies, and leveraging the United Kingdom’s solar business’ expertise to support the delivery of ISA objectives.

The ISA is an Indian initiative that was jointly launched by Prime Minister Modi and former French President Hollande on November 30, 2015, in Paris, on the sidelines of COP21, the UN Climate Conference. On December 6, 2017, ISA became a treaty-based international intergovernmental organization after Guinea ratified the organization’s framework agreement.

With the joining of the United Kingdom, a total of 75 countries have signed the framework agreement of the ISA. The agreement between the United Kingdom and ISA was signed during the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) consultations held between Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale and Sir Simon McDonald, Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in New Delhi.

Speaking after the meeting, Sir Simon said, “Over the next decade, the UK and India will be ever more central players in global debates on security, development and protecting our planet. I’m delighted that, together, we are tackling these issues head-on as partners – reinforcing our two Prime Ministers’ desire to act as a joint ‘Force for Good’ in the world.”

In April 2019, Bolivia became the 74^th member country to ratify the ISA agreement. In February 2019, Argentina and Saudi Arabia signed the framework agreement of the ISA.

Recently, ISA and the European Union 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.