The DIREKT project: An example of a technology transfer project on renewable energy

Abstract

This paper presents an example of a technology transfer project on renewable energy undertaken by the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, namely the Small Developing Island Renewable Energy Knowledge and Technology Transfer Network (DIREKT), a cooperation scheme involving universities from Germany, Fiji, Mauritius, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago. The overall aim of this project is to strengthen the science and technology capacity in the field of renewable energy of a sample of African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) small island developing states, by means of technology transfer, information exchange and networking. The project is funded by the ACP Science and Technology Programme, an EU programme for cooperation between the European Union and the ACP region. This paper introduces the DIREKT project, its aims and the partnership. It presents the methodology and results of a survey that was conducted in work package 2 of the project: the Assessment of Needs for Market-Oriented Research and Technology Transfer, along with a comparison of the results obtained in Fiji, Mauritius and selected Caribbean countries. A comparative analysis of the political and institutional frameworks in the field of renewable energy in the ACP regions and in Germany is presented, along with an assessment of research and innovation needs in science and technology. Finally, the paper summarises the similarities and differences between the surveyed regions regarding the use and promotion of renewable energy, and characterising the role of the DIREKT project as a technology transfer project on renewable energy.