President of Georgia joins Global Commission for Urgent Action on Energy Efficiency

President Salome Zurabishvili of Georgia has joined an International Energy Agency high-level global commission that is studying how to quickly speed up energy efficiency progress through new and stronger policy action.

Ms Zurabishvili, who took office as Georgia’s President in December 2018, brings the membership of the Commission for Urgent Action on Energy Efficiency to 20.

The Commission will produce a concise list of clear, actionable recommendations next year for policy actions that can be taken by countries across the globe to rapidly accelerate progress on energy efficiency.

Dr Fatih Birol, the IEA’s Executive Director, underlined that “Energy efficiency is crucial for moving the dial in the world’s efforts to reach sustainable energy goals”.

The IEA calculates that with the right energy efficiency policies, the global economy could double in size by 2040, while still maintaining broadly the same level of energy use as today. Those policies alone would enable the world to achieve more than 40% of the emissions cuts needed to reach international climate goals using cost-effective technologies already available, according to an IEA analysis.