The clean energy initiative in Malaysia has taken a steeper upward curve recently through the various action plans and programmes by Government agencies as well as various private initiatives . An example of such an initiative is clean energy deployment by mandating the adoption of a renewable energy feed-in-tariff ( FiT ) mechanism under the country ’ s 2011 Renewable Energy Act . This effort was supported by the Clean Energy Ministerial ( CEM ) service , which facilitated a partnership between the Malaysian Sustainable Energy Development Authority ( SEDA ) and the Clean Energy Regulators Initiative ( CERI ), in collaboration with the CEM ’ s Clean Energy Solutions Center , Leonardo Energy , and 21st Century Power Partnership . Ire-Tex Packaging Sdn Bhd announced that it had been granted the Feed-in-Tariff ( FiT ) approval by SEDA to develop and operate solar photovoltaics ( solar PV ) with 1MW power capacity to produce electricity for distribution to licensees in Malaysia under the new venture .
Renewables are now established around the world as mainstream sources of energy . Rapid growth , particularly in the power sector , is being driven by several factors , including improving cost-competiveness of renewable technologies , dedicated policy initiatives , better access to financing , energy security and environmental concerns , growing demand for energy in developing and emerging economies , and the need for access to modern energy . Consequently , new markets for both centralised and distributed renewable energy are emerging in all regions .
2015 was a year of firsts for high-profile agreements and announcements related to renewable energy . These include commitments by both the G7 and the G20 to accelerate access to renewable energy and to advance energy efficiency , and the United Nations General Assembly ’ s adoption of a dedicated Sustainable Development Goal on Sustainable Energy for All ( SDG 7 ).
Although many of the initiatives announced in Paris and elsewhere did not start to affect renewable markets in 2015 , there were already signs that a global energy transition was underway . Furthermore , renewable energy provided an estimated 19.2 % of global final energy consumption in 2014 , and growth in capacity and generation continued in 2015 .
Employment in the renewable energy sector ( excluding large-scale hydropower projects ) increased in 2015 to an estimated 8.1 million jobs ( direct and indirect ). Solar PV and biofuels provided the largest numbers of renewable energy jobs . Large-scale hydropower projects accounted for an additional 1.3 million direct jobs . Considering all renewable energy technologies , the leading employers in 2015 were China , Brazil , the United States and India .
MAINSTREAMING RENEWABLES : GUIDANCE FOR POLICY MAKERS
The universal nature of energy was emphasised in the international political sphere in 2015 . In September 2015 , the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Sustainable Development Goal in ensuring access to sustainable energy for all ( SDG7 ). Furthermore , 195 countries adopted the Paris Agreement to address climate change in December 2015 , committing to increasing renewables and energy efficiency as part of the goal to limit global temperature rise to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels .
There is a clear link between environmental protection , poverty reduction , economic growth and technology development , and this work on cross-cutting issues cannot be done in silos . In order to meet the agreed targets , it will be necessary to work across the various domains , including increasing dialogue , using multistakeholder approaches and cross-cutting educational programmes , and supporting inter-ministerial collaboration . National budgeting structures must also contain crosscutting aspects ; finance and potentially other Ministries must be included in climate and energy decision-making processes alongside energy Ministries .
Outside of the political sphere , civil society demonstrated its overwhelming support for a transition to renewable energy , including through the Pope ’ s environmental encyclical and the Islamic , Hindu and Buddhist declarations on climate change , all of which called on
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