[RW-23-002] Rwanda - Strengthen capacity for sustainable cooling and refrigeration

Rwanda has positioned itself as a global leader on Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phase-down under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol and efficient cooling. In 2019, Rwanda released its National Cooling Strategy, the first phase of the Rwanda Cooling Initiative which is a joint effort between the Government and the UN Environment Programme’s United for Efficiency initiative. 

The strategy aims to address the country’s growing need for air conditioners and refrigeration, while maintaining a green growth pathway. It recommends actions to expand access to cooling that conserve resources, including an upper limit on the electricity that can be used by typical refrigerators and air conditioners, and the promotion of alternative cooling solutions such as shading and natural ventilation.

Objectives

This project aims strengthen the capacity of the Rwanda Energy Management Agency (REMA) to improve energy efficiency in cooling and refrigeration and to transform the Rwandan market towards energy efficient equipment that uses low Global Warming Potential (GWP) gases. 

The project’s capacity building outputs will target non-state actors - large consumers, importers, households, and the private sector – as well as national and subnational government authorities and affiliated agencies, and align with existing policies to support their enforcement at the national and local level.

Specifically the project aims to:

• Increase the Government of Rwanda's capacity to assess, model, and reduce HFC emissions from the cooling sector. 
• Enable the implementation of a mandatory certification scheme for technicians in the cooling sector.
• Increase the capacity of cooling industry stakeholders to assess, install, and service energy-efficient and climate-friendly cooling and refrigeration equipment. 

Activities

To achieve these objectives the project will:

• Conduct capacity building workshops to government authorities on HFC emissions assessment, modelling, and monitoring.
• Develop recommendations on financial mechanisms to scale-up the adoption of efficient cooling technologies.
• Develop competency-based certification schemes for technicians with recommendations for implementation and enforcement.
• Conduct outreach programmes targeting cooling and refrigeration technicians on Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS), labelling systems, certification schemes (developed as part of project), and energy efficient equipment.