Report on Expert Roundtable (TICAD8 Official Side Event)

• Title: How to Foster ‘Win-Win’ Net-Zero Partnerships Between Japan and Countries in North Africa
• Date and time: September 29, 2022 (Thu.): 17:00 – 18:30 JST
• Organizer: Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES)
• Co-organizers: Islamic Development Bank (IsDB); Gulf Research Center (GRC)
• Objective

To invite experts from government agencies, research institutions, financial institutions, and private sector stakeholders and discuss how to foster a ‘win-win’ net-zero partnership between Japan and North African countries, specifically on the following:

-Q1: What kinds of country-specific needs and challenges for climate actions (high-priority sectors/sub-sectors) exist in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, and countries in North Africa in general?

-Q2: How do we address these needs and challenges? Who should we engage?

-Q3: To what extent is it necessary and feasible to establish green business matching platforms to foster Japan’s partnership with North African and Middle East (MENA) countries?

• Key Takeaways
• Q1: What kinds of country-specific needs and challenges for climate actions exist in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, and countries in North Africa in general?
• Country-specific needs and challenges for climate actions are common among North African countries. The specific focus could be on the following:

Egypt	Morocco	Tunisia
-Renewable energy (Generation and storage) -Energy efficiency in Building and Transport sectors	-Renewable energy (Solar, Wind, Thermal)-Energy Efficiency in Transport-Agriculture	-Waste Management-Water management

• Business opportunities could be seen more in renewable energy and energy efficiency-related projects. Still, when considering social impact, it may be important to focus on projects related to waste management and water management, such as the case in Tunisia, where the situation related to this area is worsening.
• Q2: How do we address these needs and challenges? Who should we engage?
• Through a multistakeholder approach and Public Private Partnership with a special focus on: 

-Technical assistance, capacity building (for end users, and training of trainers (ToT)). 

-Enabling environment for private sector investment (e.g., what was achieved in Morocco).

-leverage in-kind and financial support such as the offered by JICA (e.g., The SDG Business Support Survey program), IsDB Reverse linkage program, etc. 

-Not necessary through large projects and costly “hard” technologies; soft technologies (such as compressed air and steam systems management) are low-hanging fruits that can result in significant GHG emission reduction, energy efficiency, and cost saving. 

-The availability of technical experts who can operate/maintain new-to-market technology.

-Ensure the continuity of the activities/projects.

• Q3: To what extent is it necessary and feasible to establish green business matching platforms to foster Japan’s partnership with North African and Middle East (MENA) countries?

• The proposal was well-received among all participants, being practical and pragmatic. It also goes beyond passive knowledge and information sharing to match stakeholders toward actual project implementation and network.  
• All participants showed interest and readiness to support the way forward to establish such a platform and provided valuable suggestions toward such a goal, including:  

-The platform should respond to country-specific needs.  

-The platform should demonstrate on-the-ground intervention, including case studies (pilot projects), awareness creation, and especially capacity-building for the private sector and government officials.

-The platform should promote not only the transfer of technology equipment but also policies and best practices under south-south and triangular cooperation, such as the one supported by JICA and IsDB’s reverse linkage program.

• The way forward and next steps
• Preparation of Business Matching Platform (July 2022 – June 2023)

• Form an advisory group (e.g., including some of those who attended the roundtable). 
• Data/Information collection, analysis, and compilation (Mapping exercise)
• Feasibility study/site visits, if possible, back-to-back to dissemination events.
• Dissemination Events

• Side event in Egypt COP27 (Nov-Dec. 2022) 
• IsDB Annual Meeting Private Sector Forum 2023.
• Launch the Platform
• At COP28 UAE (2023)

Further elaboration

Speaker	Key message(s)
Mr. Yasuo Takahashi, Executive Director, IGES, Japan	We can achieve sustainability and climate goals and overcome the current crisis through a true win-win partnership (cross-countries and cross-stakeholders).IGES is very keen to leverage its knowledge and experience gained from focusing on Asia and Pacific countries to extend its focus and activities to North African and Middle East (MENA) countries while collaborating with leading institutions and organizations, including the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the Gulf Research Center (GRC).
Mr. Mohamed Elloumi, Ambassador of Tunisia to Japan	Japan’s Government is aware and committed to acting locally, supporting globally, and making a meaningful contribution to promote a green economy and sustainable development. For instance, under TICAD8, held in Tunisia on Aug.2022, Japan pledged to invest 30 billion US dollars in public and private financial contributions over the next three years. Out of this, 4 billion dollars will be for promoting green growth under the “Japan’s Green Growth Initiative with Africa” initiative.Japan has signed an MoU with Tunisia regarding the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) framework. This is expected to enable the transfer of Japanese technologies and financial support to Tunisia and contribute to the achievement of the NDCs of both countries.
Ms. Akiko Fujiwara, Overseas Business Development Expert, Mikuniya Corporation, Japan	Mikuniya’s Organic Waste Volume Reduction System, named “MISHIMAX” reduces the volume of organic waste, like wastewater sludge and food waste, by more than 90% in 24H through.Potential users of Mishimax include sewage treatment plants, transfer point/processing centers for Municipal waste, hotels, commercial complexes, seafood processing plants, etc. Mikuniya aims to conduct a field survey in 2023 in one of the MENA countries, supported by the Japanese Government, after gathering enough information in 2022. They welcome the support of IGES in this regard and are happy to contribute to the proposed J-MENA Green Platform.
Mr. Jihed Dridi, CEO, Mayout Seafood Products, Tunisia	Total fisheries and aquaculture production in Tunisia exceeded 150,000 tonnes in 2019.Greening seafood plants bring opportunities to technology suppliers of energy-efficient technologies, liquid waste treatment, and Solid Waste treatment, which makes it a good target for Japanese companies. Challenges that hinder greening seafood plants include: -Lack of information and access to Japanese technologies;-Lack of demonstration cases;-High initial cost if not manufactured or distributed locally;-Lack of information and access to financial support;The company is searching for the following: -Japanese investors to expand their business (by-products valorization, especially Mediterranean bonito);-Japanese technology suppliers for energy-efficient technologies and/or solid and liquid waste treatment;The company is ready to offer its site for demonstration projects and to facilitate interaction with other seafood processing plants in Tunisia whenever necessary.
Ms. Akiko Komori, Director, Middle East Division 1, the Middle East and Europe, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan	JICA has offices in Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco, and until 2021, JICA implemented 27 Public-Private Partnership projects there (Morocco (17), Egypt (6), and Tunisia(4)).JICA’s support mainly consists of: i) Technical cooperation, ii) ODA loans and iii) grants.  JICA calls for proposals to be financed by JICA from the private sector, such as those under the Grassroots Technical Cooperation and the SDGs Business Supporting Surveys. The latter includes three sub-programs, namely:  i) Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) Partnership Promotion Survey (for data collection and analysis); ii) SDGs Business Model Formulation Survey (Technology feasibility);iii) SDGs Business Verification Survey (technology verification and business model proposal). More details are available at the following link:  https://www.jica.go.jp/priv_partner/case/ku57pq00002avzny-att/ind_summary_en_201907.pdf The proposal will go through a systematic process for approval involving people from JICA and outside to ensure accountability and fairness of the selection. Successful proposals are very strong, with clear and relevant objectives, and especially proactive leaders (CEOs, etc.) that think outside the box by addressing local and global issues across areas (Social and Environmental. Etc.).  -Introduced two case studies in Morocco 1) Recycling of Olive Mill Waste by use of Oil Temperature Decompression Drying Machine (technology Providers are: Co-stage Engineering Co., Ltd., (Fukuoka, Japan), and Suntech Co., Ltd., (Kagawa, Japan)) and 2) The installation of Smokeless Incinerators for Medical Wastes at Public Hospitals in Regional hub cities (technology Provider is CHUWA Industrial Co., Ltd., (Tokyo, Japan))-JICA also carries the African Business Education Initiative for Youth (ABE Initiative), under which more than 1500 youth from 54 countries in Africa came to Japan between 2014-2020 as students or interns. JICA strongly supports the proposed J-MENA GREEN Platform because it is not just for information sharing but also includes matching stakeholders to exchange ideas that lead to action and network building.
Mr. Mostafa Hasaneen, Senior Sustainable Energy Specialist, The Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE), Egypt	The Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE) is an intergovernmental organization (Think Tank). It has 17 Arab countries among its members. RCREEE teams with regional governments and global organizations to enable and increase the adoption of renewable energy and energy efficiency practices in the Arab region in key work areas: capacity development and learning, policies and regulations, research and statistics, and technical assistance.RCREEE provides technical consultation on National Energy Efficiency Action Plan, National Renewable Energy Action Plan, Sustainable energy strategies and policies, and Green Hydrogen National strategies. Critical needs in Egypt include:-Renewable energy integration and storage;-Energy Efficiency in the building sector (more than 40% of energy consumption in the country);-Energy Efficiency in the transportation sector, with a special focus on Electric Vehicles.RCREEE work also regards sustainable finance, such as the one by the German Government involving German companies, which led to the spread of German technologies in Egypt. This model case can be replicated with the Japanese partners, if possible. For instance, RCREEE, in partnership with Green for Growth Fund (GGF), invites businesses, experienced start-ups, NGOs, research bodies, or other relevant organizations to apply to “Clim@.” Clima@ is a competition looking for innovative businesses or projects that have the power to change current practices and demonstrate a strong positive climate impact. GGF is active in 6 RCREEE member states, namely Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine& TunisiaRCREEE appraised the proposal of launching J-MENA Green and showed its extreme interest to a member of its Expert Working Groups.
Mr. Hédi Ben Abbès, President, Tunisian-Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Tunisia	Key areas where to focus on in Tunisia are: 1) Waste Management, such as technical assistance and technologies related to Municipality waste. 2) Water Management due tackle the water shortage (Desertification threatens 75% of Tunisia’s Land). Out of 36Billion M3 of rain, only 4.8 Billion are being exploited and used by people, industries, and a vibrant tourism sector which requires a lot of water.Lack/Poor management of waste and water significantly affects the quality of life and health (social problem). The situation is even worsening and requires urgent intervention.The situation is mainly due to poor infrastructure, lack of technical skills and lack of awareness, making it even more difficult for Tunisia Authority to address the problem. Mishimax is a clear, practical, useful solution that can be considered among the solutions. TJCCI will provide all the necessary support for the feasibility study and the uptake if necessary. Finance is not always the key barrier, but more or less, technical assistance is most needed.  In Tunisia, we have been Japanese-oriented since 2012, before the launch of TICAD. Japan has the technologies, and North Africa is a potential Market; we need to leverage our assets and work to match the right stakeholders together to address the environmental problems jointly.TJCCI welcomes the J-MENA Green initiative very warmly because projects should be in the PPP structure, so appraise JICA’s effort in this regard, hoping to replicate the successful experience in Morocco in Tunisia.TJCCI published a white book that includes projects on green and blue economies, including 82 projects presented at TICAD8. They look for partners, especially Japanese companies. UNDP took Tunisia as a case study to launch a program titled “Business and Human rights” with the financial support of Japan, under which sub-program related to green businesses. Under J-MENA GREEN, Tunisia can be a starting point for other MENA countries. In doing so, I commit myself and my organization to support your initiative toward the materialization of the platform and its operation.Created a Japanese desk in Africa to bridge the culture gap and promote investment, not only with Tunisia but other African countries as well, especially on green/blue economy through our 30 benches in Africa.
Mr. Momar Sow, Operations Team Leader, Economic Infrastructure, IsDB, Regional Hub Rabat, Morocco	IsDB: Development Bank operates in around 57 countries, including Morocco, the leader in the development of RE in Africa. IsDB is Working with Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy Renewable Energy (MASEN) to deploy the Moroccan experience in other African countries.In Morocco, under the NDC, there is a special focus on Power Sector by increasing the RE (Hydo system, Wind, and Solar).Energy Efficiency is also a priority in Morocco, targeting a 20% GHG emission reduction through EE measures within 2030 (agriculture, transportation).In Morocco, they have robust governance and planning system, which is very important for investment, especially by the private sector (The business environment is favorable with significant improvement recently, such as the put in place of a framework to double the share of the private sector from 1/3 to 2/3 in the economy.In short, key focus areas could be the Power sector (RE), Energy Efficiency, especially in the agriculture and transport sectors)
Mr. Prosanto Pal, Associate Director, The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI), India	TERI: independent Think Tank.Through JITMAP, there was a Co-Benefit to TERI where TERI’s staff/engineers were also trained by Japanese experts dispatched to India. JITMAP is an action-oriented (on the ground) platform, not just information/reports sharing; Apart from hard technologies, there are a lot of soft technologies that can save energy, such as optimizing air compressors, steam management, etc.; along with training and hand holding, they can be considered low-hanging fruits and achieve similar impact as those costly/hard technologies.There is momentum; MENA countries are sharing commitment under NDCs and green/sustainability agendas; therefore, we think there is a very good sign for opportunities for Green MENA. Specific technologies could include District cooling, water desalination, green hydrogen, etc. It would help if you had a strong and reliable local partner to implement any project/activity effectively. The availability of technical experts to operate and maintain the technology is also crucial.Should also be committed to a long-term program when thinking…it takes time to see the success. Continuity is key for any successful initiative.
Mr. Oskar Ziemelis	GRC is an Independent Think Tank based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.Certainly, there has been good progress over the last year in the IGES-GRC-IsDB collaboration, but much remains.The proposed J-MENA GREEN Platform is important because business-to-business interaction is valuable to achieving ambitious national objectives. Government-to-government matching and efforts are already taking place, and this platform could be a way to motivate/mobilize the private sector.It’s wonderful to see this happening in a world where conflicts and competition are hardly occurring; this can counterbalance a bit.
Mr. Syed Hussein	Government-to-government efforts are taking place through development institutions and multilateral institutions, but the proposed platform could contribute to bringing the private sector on board. It binds people/businesses together in a very practical and pragmatic manner.IsDB is (honored) committed to supporting this type of platform and programs that connect 57 members with sharp and bright ideas. Looking forward to hosting you at COP27 Pavillion

Appendix:

1. Expert Roundtable Program 

17:00 -17:10	Welcoming and Opening Remarks-Mr. Yasuo Takahashi, Executive Director, IGES, Japan Keynote speech -Mr. Mohamed Elloumi, Ambassador of Tunisia to Japan
17:10 – 17:15 17:15 – 18:30	Setting the Scene -Mr. Abdessalem Rabhi, Senior Programme Coordinator, IGES, Japan Presentations -Ms. Akiko Fujiwara, Overseas Business Development Expert, Mikuniya Corporation, Japan-Mr. Jihed Dridi, CEO, Mayout Seafood Products, Tunisia-Ms. Akiko Komori, Director, Middle East Division 1, the Middle East and Europe, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan Q&A and DiscussionModerator -Mr. Abdessalem Rabhi, Senior Programme Coordinator, IGES, Japan Speakers (in addition to the above three presenters)-Mr. Mostafa Hasaneen, Senior Sustainable Energy Specialist, The Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE), Egypt-Mr. Hédi Ben Abbès, President, Tunisian-Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Tunisia-Mr. Momar Sow, Operations Team Leader, Economic Infrastructure, IsDB, Regional Hub Rabat, Morocco-Mr. Prosanto Pal, Associate Director, The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI), India The panel discussion aims to address the following questions:-What kinds of country-specific needs and challenges for climate actions (high-priority sectors/sub-sectors) exist?- How do we address these needs and challenges? Who should we engage?-To what extent is it necessary and feasible to establish green business matching platforms to foster Japan-MENA green business cooperation?
18:25 – 18:30	Closing Remarks-Mr. Oskar Ziemelis, Director of Cooperation, Gulf Research Center (GRC)-Mr. Syed Hussein Quadri, Acting Director, Resilience and Social Development Department, IsDB

O Master of the conference (MC):  Mr. Naoki Mori, Programme Director, IGES

2. Photos from the event

3. Total Participants; 91 out of 133 registrants
4. Satisfaction report