The findings of the IPCC climate report presented in November 2007 leave no doubt: climate change is caused by humans, and is progressing apace. The researchers predict that sea levels will rise by 59 cm and that average temperatures around the world will increase by 6.4 degrees by the year 2100.

In the light of these alarming figures, all countries have to work towards stabilising CO2 emissions by 2015 and then reducing them. For developing countries, this constitutes an enormous challenge. For one thing, economic development is inconceivable without electricity. As the world’s population continues to grow, demand is rising for energy for heating, cooling and cooking, as well as for business and industry. Meeting this demand without adversely affecting the climate or the environment is one of the tasks to which the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GTZ) is dedicated, working on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

In projects all around the globe, GTZ experts are concerning themselves with energy provision in developing countries, particularly in rural and structurally weak regions. Renewable forms of energy are often the most sensible option in such cases. As well as that, though, the experts are also on the lookout for means of saving energy and using energy more efficiently.

To illustrate what our work is about, on the following pages you will find short descriptions of typical projects plus photos, reports and brief interviews, along with facts and figures about the subject:

• Energy supply: energy for millions
• Renewable energy: power for the future
• Energy and energy efficiency: energetic development
• Energy consultancy: less is more