Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 24 September 2020 ‒ Africa has witnessed an important milestone by the establishment of the first regional refrigeration and air-
conditioning association, the Union of African Associations of Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Actors (U-3ARC). U-3ARC was registered and launched with the support and membership of local refrigeration associations in 28 African Francophone and Anglophone countries.
The first meeting of the General Assembly of U-3ARC was held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso from 24-26 September 2020, along with an exhibition and a back-to-back regional celebration of World Refrigeration Day (WRD), which could not take place on 26 June due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
The opening ceremony was attended in-person by high-level officials from the Government of Burkina Faso including the Mayor of Ouagadougou, the Minister of African Integration and Burkinabè Abroad. Also in attendance – but through virtual means due to COVID-19 – were representatives of the African Union, UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), Air Conditioning and Refrigeration European Association (AREA), WRD Secretariat, members of African associations as well as UNEP OzonAction, represented by the Montreal Protocol Regional Coordinators for Francophone and Anglophone Network countries and the OzonAction Partnerships Coordinator.
U-3ARC has far-reaching plans to build a regional programme to support the local associations in conducting state-of-art events and programmes to upgrade the capacities of refrigeration individuals and companies in the continent and build a connection and network with the international HVACR associations and societies.
UNEP OzonAction, within its regional Compliance Assistance Programme mandate, and its global partnership portfolio, will work closely with U-3ARC to ensure the provision of best services to National Ozone Units within the objectives and goals of the Montreal Protocol and its Kigali Amendment.
For more information:
Yamar Guisse, Montreal Protocol Regional Coordinator (Francophone Africa) – yamar.guisse[at]un.org
Patrick Salifu, Montreal Protocol Regional Coordinator (Anglophone Africa) – patrick.salifu[at]un.org
Ayman Eltalouny, OzonAction International Partnerships Coordinator – ayman.eltalouny[at]un.org
