International Solar Alliance

International Solar Alliance
AbbreviationISA
Formation30 November 2015
Founded atParis, France
PurposeBring together a group of nations to endorse clean energy, sustainable environment, public transport and climate
HeadquartersNational Institute of Solar Energy, Gurugram, Haryana, India
Region served
All members of UN
FieldsRenewable energy
Membership
120+ members of UN, incl. the United States, Japan, France, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Algeria and Australia etc.
Official language
French, English
Director General
Ajay Mathur
President
India
Co-President
France
WebsiteInternational Solar Alliance
New website of International Solar Alliance available in UNO's six languages.
World map with the Torrid Zone, the area between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, highlighted in red.

The International Solar Alliance (ISA) is an alliance of more than 120 signatory countries,[1] most being sunshine countries, which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. The primary objective of the alliance is to work for the efficient consumption of solar energy to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. This initiative was first proposed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a speech in November 2015 at Wembley Stadium in which he referred to sunshine countries as Suryaputra ("Sons of the Sun").[2] The alliance is a treaty-based inter-governmental organization. Countries that do not fall within the Tropics can join the alliance and enjoy all benefits as other members, with the exception of voting rights.[3]

Bangladesh boasts the world's most extensive off-grid solar power initiative, a valuable source of insights and guidance for other nations seeking to enhance availability of economical and eco-friendly electricity. Through the utilization of solar energy, this initiative has facilitated electricity access for 20 million residents of Bangladesh.[4]

The initiative was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the India Africa Summit, and a meeting of member countries ahead of the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris in November 2015.[5][6] The framework agreement of the International Solar Alliance opened for signatures in Marrakesh, Morocco, in November 2016, and 102 countries joined.[1]

  1. ^ a b "International Solar Alliance". isolaralliance.org. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  2. ^ "Narendra Modi's Speech at Wembley Stadium: As It Happened". Wall Street Journal. 13 November 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference BS1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Bangladesh Solar Home Systems Provide Clean Energy for 20 million People". World Bank. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
  5. ^ Goswami, Urmi (30 November 2015), "PM Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande to launch game changing solar alliance", The Economic Times
  6. ^ "France, India to launch global solar alliance", Reuters, 29 November 2015