6 December 2011: The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) hosted a two-day practitioners’ workshop to explore how best to enable local renewable energy entrepreneurship. The meeting, convened by IRENA’s Policy Advice and Capacity Building Directorate, was held at the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore, India.

The workshop, which took place from from 30 November to 1 December 2011, was attended by over 50 participants from more than 20 countries and diverse backgrounds, including social enterprises, development agencies, local financial institutions and government policy makers. It provided a platform for exchange of viewpoints on barriers hindering deployment of renewable energy technologies in rural areas of developing countries. Discussions revolved around innovative approaches, conducive policies and appropriate institutional frameworks for creating viable local renewable energy markets.

Participants highlighted barriers faced by renewable energy businesses, such as grant-based support schemes that do not encourage the development of sustainable markets, lack of appropriate market data, bureaucracy, and lack of skilled labor. The meeting identified a number of practical recommendations on how to overcome barriers through enabling policy frameworks. A list of these recommendations will be posted on IRENA’s website soon. [Press Release] [Workshop Program] [Background Note] [List of Participants]