Lesotho's king pitches green energy to Davos elites

Lesotho's King Letsie III has launched an ambitious campaign in snowy Davos, where global leaders have gathered, with a royal plea: invest in his small African country's green shift.

The monarch traveled from his mountainous, landlocked kingdom within South Africa to promote a fund focused on green energy through meetings with leaders in the business and political sectors within the Swiss Alps village.

"The World Economic Forum in Davos appears to serve as a magnet for global leaders from the realms of politics, economics, and business," King Letsie told AFP during an interview.

We believed that, if feasible, we should personally meet with these industry leaders, these government officials, to explore how we can promote our renewable energy capabilities.

A country of approximately two million people with limited resources, Lesotho is heavily reliant on neighboring South Africa economically, with many citizens employed in South Africa and remitting earnings back to their homeland.

Many people work in South Africa's gold and diamond mines, but fewer are doing so because "the industry is no longer what it once was", King Letsie explained.

Lesotho is a constitutional monarchy, where the king does not possess any formal power, but King Letsie has traveled the world to promote a private sector-managed fund.

The objective of this fund is to stimulate private investment in solar, wind and hydro power projects in Lesotho, and ultimately export renewable energy to South Africa.

"Viewing our potential to generate renewable energy as a driving force for economic development, I genuinely believe it can be a groundbreaking factor in shaping our economy," King Letsie stated.

A novel economic framework is required.

'Get things rolling'

Standard Chartered from the UK and Standard Bank Group from South Africa are offering financial advice to this fund, which was initiated in February 2024 and is called His Majesty King Letsie III Just Energy Transition Fund.

Lesotho's King Letsie III is actively seeking to attract investors.

"After all, we urgently require some decisive funding to set everything in motion," he said.

Lesotho has an abundance of sunlight, wind, and water, and it has entered into partnerships with Chinese companies to generate solar power.

It is also at the forefront of climate change, with a drought in the previous year devastating crops and livestock, leading the government to proclaim a nationwide state of emergency.

"This is one of the glaring impacts of climate change," said King Letsie.

In Davos, he has a meeting schedule with mining group Anglo American, a Danish wind energy company and the presidents of South Africa and Botswana.

We have traveled to Scandinavia, visiting all the Nordic countries," King Letsie said. "We have also been to the UK and the United States, engaging in discussions with various institutions and businesses with the goal of encouraging their involvement and investment.

I am hopeful," he stated. "The sentiment globally is shifting towards moving away from fossil fuels, in favour of renewable energy.

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