UN seeks high-profile drive for clean energy

The UN has called for a high-profile initiative to promote universal access to power such as electricity in developing countries based on a global advocacy campaign and investments on the ground for clean energy.

In its annual Human Development Report, the UN Development Progamme (UNDP) said the time is right for such a drive as the UN has designated 2012 as the international year of sustainable energy for all. This year's report, Sustainability and Equity, published on Wednesday, focuses on environmental degradation and its potential impact on human development. Environmental trends over recent decades show deterioration on several fronts, the report says, with adverse repercussions for human development.

As to the cost in moving to clean energy, the report cites estimates of total annual mitigation and adaptation costs by 2030 as ranging from $249bn to $1,371bn. While the amounts are large, the UNDP points out they are below current spending on defence, on recent banking bailouts and on "perverse" subsidies.

It points to "innovative" sources of financing such as a currency transaction tax – an idea it first mooted in 1994, which is gaining traction. The EU backs such a tax, although it is opposed by the UK which fears that such a move would undercut London's status as a financial centre. A tax of 0.005% would yield around $40bn a year worldwide, according to the report, while even a unilateral currency transaction tax limited to the euro could raise $4.2bn to $9.3bn in additional financing.

The report also puts particular emphasis on the need to empower women as a way of meeting the world's environmental challenges.