“We will not achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement without phasing out oil and gas. Science confirms this time and again. Therefore, it is an important step in the right direction that Kenya, Spain and Samoa now join BOGA, thus expanding the group of countries committed to working for a fossil-free future,” says the Minister for Development Cooperation and Global Climate Policy, Dan Jørgensen, who welcomed the new members at a press conference at COP28.
“The strengthening of BOGA also plays a role for the negotiations here at COP28, since BOGA is a strong actor in the fight to include the phasing out of all fossil fuels in the final text. We saw this last year at COP27, where BOGA was one of the driving forces behind securing support for fossil fuel phase-out from around 80 countries – including major oil producing countries like the U.S., Australia, and Norway,” he says.
With the new members, BOGA now includes a total of 24 countries and subnational governments.
Kenya is a role model for other countries with its ambitious commitment to renewable energy, including Africa’s largest wind farm. However, the country also depends on imported oil and is developing its own oil reserves. Kenya’s membership of BOGA is an important step in ensuring the transition to an energy system based on renewable energy sources.
“Kenya is pleased to join this action-oriented Alliance which aligns with our green development strategy and ambition to pursue a development pathway that prioritizes our planet and heritage of future generations of Kenyans. We welcome the opportunity to work collaboratively with like-minded partner governments to tap into our immense renewable energy resources to drive green industrialization to sustainably transform our economies and the lives of our people,” say Special Envoy for Climate Change, Ali Mohamed.
Spain has become a core member of BOGA by committing to end new licensing and bidding rounds for oil and gas production and exploration. Additionally, Spain has set a target of ending its oil and gas production before 2042, a significant step towards becoming carbon-neutral by 2050 and ensuring a transition away from oil and gas production.
“We have agreed to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 and double energy efficiency efforts. None of this will be worthwhile if we do not tackle gradually phasing out fossil fuels. Spain has shown that it is technically, socially and economically feasible to do this with coal fired power plants, we need to tackle the next steps, gas and oil,” says Vice-President of Spain and Minister for the Ecological Transition.
As a small island state, Samoa is especially vulnerable towards climate change and the government has been very vocal in advocating for other countries to phase out fossil fuels.
In 2019, Samoa, as part of the Pacific Islands Forum, committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and calls for a just transition from fossil fuels.
"Samoa has joined the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance because for our country the phase out of fossil fuels is existential. We want to lead in an alliance of like-minded countries at this COP and beyond to ensure that phase out becomes a reality. It is only by speaking up together against those with vested interest in the status quo will we get the outcome we need here in Dubai,” says Toeolesulusulu Cedric Schuster, Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Land for Samoa
“With new members from different parts of the world, BOGA shows that the desire for a sustainable future without dependence on fossil fuels is a global movement that cuts across cultural, geographical, and economic differences. A fossil-free future benefits everyone,” says Dan Jørgensen.
Denmark is one of the two co-chairs of BOGA. At today’s press conference, it was also announced that Quebec will take over the role of co-chair from Costa Rica, and that Kenya and Colombia will be the first recipients of support from the BOGA fund. The fund offers technical assistance to developing countries that produce oil and gas. With this assistance, countries get help in preparing technical analyses and plans for phasing out oil and gas production in a just and inclusive manner.