The Latin American and Caribbean Energy Organization (OLACDE) took part in the event “Parliaments in Climate Action and Just Transition,” organized by the Latin American and Caribbean Parliament in Panama, within the framework of the Parliamentary Alliance for Climate Action and Just Transition (APACTJ). The gathering brought together legislative leaders from the region to strengthen the role of parliaments in responding to climate change from a social justice perspective.
During the opening, OLACDE’s Executive Secretary, Andrés Rebolledo, noted that Latin America and the Caribbean generate 70% of their electricity from renewable sources, yet only a fraction of the region’s potential has been harnessed: 16% of wind resources, 30% of hydroelectric potential, and just 2% of solar potential. He also highlighted the region’s strategic position in the global energy transition, producing 27% of the world’s biofuels, 25% of critical minerals, and 10% of the world’s oil.
Unlike other regions, less than 4% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Latin America and the Caribbean come from the energy sector, compared to the global average of 65%. “Latin America and the Caribbean is a solution region,” said Rebolledo, who urged legislators to work toward a common energy agenda based on a just transition, regional integration, sustainable investment, and shared planning.
He also proposed moving toward a regional energy integration treaty, optimizing the use of electricity interconnections currently utilized at only 25%, and modernizing regulatory frameworks so they drive innovation and equity. “Legal frameworks must stop being reactive and become drivers of change. We need laws with an anticipatory, strategic, and sustainable vision,” he emphasized.
On the panel “Political Dialogue on Climate Action and Just Transition,” OLACDE’s Director of Studies, Projects, and Information, Fitzgerald Cantero, reinforced the need for modern, representative legal frameworks as an essential condition for advancing toward a fair, secure, and sustainable energy system.
Cantero stressed that the energy transition requires laws adapted to the pace of innovation, effective parliamentary oversight, and genuine coordination among governments, legislatures, and citizens. “Energy isn’t valued until there’s a blackout. Investment needs certainty. And people need representation. The transition will happen with social license, or it won’t happen at all,” he concluded.
OLACDE reaffirms its commitment to regional energy governance based on equity, sustainability, and cooperation.
