In support of its ongoing encouragement for sustainable development around the world, the Zayed Sustainability Prize continues to actively drive the 20by2020 initiative – an impact-focused, UAE-driven global humanitarian initiative, implemented in partnership with Abu Dhabi Global Market, Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, Mubadala Petroleum, Year of Tolerance, Masdar and Majid Al Futtaim.
20by2020 is a natural extension of the Zayed Sustainability Prize’s ongoing commitment to work with its winners and finalists, by allowing their solutions to reach a much wider number of people, around the globe, and empower communities with technologies and long-term solutions needed for sustainable growth and the fulfilment of key UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
This noble drive has increased in importance this year, as vulnerable communities around the world deal with the profound economic implications of the ongoing global pandemic.
In recent months, 20by2020 deployed sustainable lighting solutions at Prince Hamzah Hospital in the Jordanian capital Amman, installing energy-efficient LED solar lights in the main streets surrounding the public hospital, to provide lighting and enhance the safety of the area for more than 3,000 people and more than 100 hospital staff, on a daily basis.
The deployment came at a critical time as the hospital was tasked with treating the largest number of COVID-19 patients in the country, at the time of the deployment. Sunna Design, the Zayed Sustainability Prize 2018 winner under the Energy category, and a leading France-based SME was responsible for the technology installation.
20y2020 continued to effectively reach lives through the installation of solar-powered lighting solutions in the remote Egyptian village of Habisha in the Asyut Governorate, also by Sunna Design, with the aim of improving standards of living and creating new socio-economic benefits for over 3,500 people daily.
This month, 20by2020 is commissioning Safe Water Cube to offer thousands of people across three Cambodian villages safer and more healthier lives, following the deployment of a new water purifying technology, with the aim of benefiting 4,400 residents.
In addition, 20by2020 will be providing 240 Solar Home Systems and 640 solar lamps to 5,000 people at the Rohingya refugee camp, in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. The deployment is led by the Zayed Sustainability Prize 2020 Energy category winner: Electricians without Borders.
The 20by2020 initiative is also engaging several last mile communities in Madagascar in September through key solutions, providing more than 5,000 people with daily access to clean water for drinking and sanitation, with technology provided by the 2019 Zayed Sustainability Prize finalist under the Water category; Safe Water Cube.
By October, 20by2020 would have also rolled out additional critical sustainable solutions, including clean energy in Indonesia’s South Kalimantan region, where more than 20,000 beneficiaries will gain access to Solar Home Systems and solar lights.
In addition, Phase 1 of 20by2020 will conclude with a sustainable deployment that will provide clean drinking water in Costa Rica through Solarkiosk, a German-based SME and the 2020 Zayed Sustainability Prize finalist under the ‘Energy’ category. The company specialises in renewable energy products and services for rural, off-grid areas, and the project is expected to benefit2,500 people.
Moreover, the second phase of 20by2020 will soon be announced by the Zayed Sustainability Prize and the initiative’s partners and will include an additional 10 countries as 20by2020 seeks to further amplify impact and reach across widespread areas of the world.