UNDP and MMERE meets for the first time for electricity campaign
BY LORETTA B MANELE
UNDP and the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Rural Electrification (MMERE) came together for the first time not only for a panel discussion but to campaign for electricity.
Raluca Eddon, Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP, Solomon Islands raised this at a panel discussion on “Pathways towards better electric power availability, affordability, and sustainability” on Friday, November 14, 2025 at Heritage Park Hotel.
“It is the first time that UNDP and the Ministry of Energy and Mines are coming together, not just for a panel discussion, but for a campaign,” she said.
In attendance were panelists representing MMERE, Solomon Power, SICCI, Media and Civil Society.
Eddon said this is a campaign that really looks at electricity, access to electricity and access to energy as an enabler of development.
Speaking of a survey on electricity that is currently underway by UNDP and MMERE, she stressed that this is actually the first time in the history of Solomon Islands that people are taking a self-administered survey.
“….and I think the results are really exciting.
“It is also, apart from the census, we believe the largest survey undertaken, certainly on this topic, to date,” she added.
Eddon highlighted that most importantly, through the survey, it is an opportunity to actively engage with the people of Solomon Islands.
She added that with the voices of ordinary people, they will see how the preliminary results are capturing some of these voices and the priorities that people are expressing.
Eddon said from UNDP, they would like for people to feel that this campaign is not just business as usual, but a campaign that we all have to participate in and hear what the people of Solomon Islands are thinking about access to power.
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