Following on from the discussion and findings of the roundtables organized in 2021 to examine the future of the extractive industries sector in the context of meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, ESCAP is continuing to investigate the potential implications of the energy transition on countries in Asia and the Pacific. Future work by ESCAP on this topic will be guided by three main principles.
- First, ESCAP member States must be sufficiently prepared for the impacts of the energy transition on the extractive industries.
- Second, it is critical that producing countries improve the environmental and economic sustainability of the extractive industries, so that increased demand does not lead to increased environmental degradation and inequality.
- Third, the future direction for both producing and consuming countries must be towards circularity, to ensure long term environmental and economic sustainability.
Objective of the Policy Dialogue
The overall objective of this Policy Dialogue is to explore more deeply the implications of the energy transition for the extractives industry in the Asia-Pacific region. In particular, it will consider the following questions.
- How can countries that depend on fossil fuel exports plan for and manage the disruptions caused by the transition to net-zero carbon emissions?
- What are the implications of the energy transition for countries that currently or could potentially extract and export critical minerals?
- What are the energy security implications of increased demand for critical raw materials and other inputs into the clean energy economy?
- What policies should countries implement in order to improve the sustainability of the extractives industry and downstream industries, including increased adoption of circular economy practices?
- What role should UN ESCAP and other regional entities take in enabling the just, equitable, and sustainable development of the extractives industry in the Asia-Pacific region?
