Setting incentives for emission reductions in Developing Countries: the case of social housing in Colombia
Colombia faces a number of challenges including growing need for social housing in metropolitan areas driven by accelerating urbanisation associated with a growing electricity demand as well as increasing hydroelectric uncertainty as a result of changes in the el Niño weather phenomenon. At the same time, Colombia actively implementing its NDC under the Paris Agreement. These include measures to improve energy efficiency in the residential sector overall. Policies for renewable electricity, building codes, and appliance energy performance standards all play a role in these efforts. However, these policies are not currently putting Colombia on a path towards the decarbonisation of the building sector. Through Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, countries can cooperate in NDC implementation to allow for higher climate ambition. There may be an opportunity to construct Net Zero Energy Buildings though an Article 6 pilot in the social housing sector, which would reduce energy consumption, reduce emissions, reduce energy poverty, reduce energy consumption subsidy payments, and improve public health and energy security. Such a pilot could, together with a larger policy roadmap towards increasingly stringent energy efficiency standards, help put the Colombian building sector on a path towards decarbonisation and alignment with the Paris Agreement.
