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FAQs on Membership

What is the process of becoming a member of the ISA?

Membership of the International Solar Alliance is open to States which are Members of the United Nations. Countries that qualify this eligibility requirement may complete the following steps to secure membership of the ISA

    1

    A representative of the Government of the country may receive certified copies of the Framework Agreement of ISA from the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India - the Depositary of the ISA Framework Agreement. The ISA Secretariat may, on the country’s request, facilitate coordination with the Depositary

2

A representative of the Government of the country with the requisite Executive approval may sign the certified copies of the Framework Agreement of ISA in three languages – English,Hindi and French

3

The signed Framework Agreement of ISA shall be submitted to the Depositary after which the country is officially recognized as a Signatory to the Framework Agreement of ISA

4

After signing, a formal Instrument of Ratification,Acceptance or Approval needs to be deposited with the Depositary to acquire full membership of the ISA

What are the main activities that ISA members countries are required/expected to participate in yearly?

Member Countries and signatories to the Framework Agreement of ISA are invited to participate in the governance meetings of the ISA, which include

In case that a Member Country is selected as a Vice President from a region as per the Rules of Procedure of the ISA Assembly, they country is required to

  • 1

    Regular and Special sessions of the ISA Assembly

  • 2

    Chair the Meeting of the respective Regional Committee

  • 3

    Regional Committee Meetings of the respective regions

  • 4

    Participate in the Meetings of the Standing Committee of the ISA Assembly

Under ordinary circumstances, the ISA organizes 1 Regular Session of the ISA Assembly, 1 Regional Committee Meeting for each of the 4 ISA Regions, and 2 Meetings of the Standing Committee each year. Special Session of the ISA Assembly may be convened as per provisions of the Rules of Procedure of ISA Assembly. The Rules of Procedure specify that members shall be notified at least 3 months in advance about any session of the Assembly.

The Rules of Procedure containing further details on the governance meetings may be accessed using this link - Rules of Procedure of ISA Assembly

What are the Rights, Roles and Obligations of the ISA Member
Countries and Observers?

The Framework Agreement of ISA and the Rules of Procedure of ISA Assembly specify the rules and provisions available to the Member Countries. These rules and provisions may change in case the member country becomes an office-bearer of the ISA governance structure

Please use the following links to access the documents

  • Framework Agreement of ISA
  • Rules of Procedure of ISA Assembly

These documents also specify the rules and provisions available for the observers. Please note that ISA does not provide a permanent observer status to countries. Observer status for a country or organisation at a
session of the ISA Assembly or a Meeting of the Regional Committee shall be at the discretion of the respective governing body.

Is there any membership fee?

The ISA does not require a membership fee.

Is there any particular financial contribution required from member countries/observers, in short and medium-term?

The Fifth Assembly of ISA has approved a voluntary contribution mechanism under which Member Countries are invited to contribute to ensure the financial sustainability of the ISA. The Fifth Session of ISA Assembly has approved annual contribution levels as specified below, however the mechanism has not yet been institutionalised

1

USD 50,000 for developed Member Countries.

2

USD 50,000 for developed Member Countries

3

USD 10,000 for Member Countries classified as Least Developed Country (LDC) or Small Island Developing State (SIDS)

ISA welcomes any additional contribution to its corpus fund and its general fund by its Member Countries. Member countries may also extend grants
or concessional loans to ISA for establishing or for supporting ongoing
projects in developing and least developed Member Countries.

How to Engage Further with the ISA on Project Basis?

The following avenues are available to the ISA Members Countries to engage with the ISA and its Secretariat:

The Member Countries are invited to join the 9 thematic programmes of the ISA, focusing on the areas they are interested by collaboarting with the ISA and their fellow Member Countries. The 9 thematic programmes of the ISA are:

Scaling up Solar Applications for Agricultural use

Affordable Finance at Scale

Scaling up Solar Mini-Grids

Scaling Solar Rooftops

Scaling Solar E-mobility and Storage

Solar Parks

Solarising Heating and Cooling Systems

Solar PV Battery and Waste Management

Solar for Green Hydrogen

  • Member Countries may extend grants or concessional loans to establish projects through the ISA. Countries extending the funding support may dictate the scope of the projects, including the activities (capacity building, analytics and advocacy, programmatic support), target geographies, partnering organisations, etc.
  • Countries may also extend in-kind support to initiatives of the ISA, such as the Solar Technology Application Resource Centres (STAR-Cs), training programmes and webinars, publications, or help with particular Organisational Development activities.
  • The ISA Manual of Regulations also provides for project sponsors to offer human resources as officers on secondment to the ISA Secretariat to support the projects.

Expectations from Member Countries of the
International Solar Alliance

Representatives of the Member Country

  • The country must designate a representative from its diplomatic mission in India as the Contact Person (CP) for the ISA. The CP shall act as a secondary channel of communication between the ISA and the country.

    01

  • The ISA welcomes any additional contribution to its corpus fund and its general fund by its Member Countries.

    02

  • The country shall nominate a Minister (or an Executive of similar stature) to represent the country at the meetings of the governance bodies of the ISA. Ideally, the representative shall be the Minister holding the portfolio of either Energy / Renewable Energy or Environment / Climate Change.

    03

Coordination and knowledge Sharing

  • The country shall inform the ISA about its intention of joining any and extent of support required under each of the cprogrammes.

  • The country may inform the ISA about its requirement of support in enhancing sectoral readiness and capacity building in the country through trainings, webinars, ISA Fellowship Programme and Solar Technology and Application Resource Centres (STAR-Cs).

  • For assisting in its analytics and advocacy initiatives, Member Countries may be invited to share with the ISA data and information pertaining to the country, its energy sector, and its renewable energy deployment.

  • The country may be requested to share with the ISA its policies, targets, and roadmaps for the solar energy sector and other allied matters, such as climate change, energy access, economic development, power infrastructure, etc.

  • The ISA, being a platform for international coordination, may request Member Countries to extend support to other Member Countries through knowledge sharing, financial support, or technical assistance.

  • For facilitating implementation of its programme and projects, delegations from the ISA Secretariat undertake mission visits to Member Countries. In this regard, the ISA may request support of the Member
    Country and its diplomatic mission in India, which may include:

    1. Facilitation of meetings with the minister, senior government officials and the private sector in the Member Country
    2. Logistical support, which may include visa and other travel documentation, local transport in the country
      , security, and interpretation services. Diplomatic protocol shall be observed if
      the Director General is part of the delegation

  • The country is invited to refer relevant private sector organisations from the Member Country to join the ISA Corporate Advisory Group and participate in solar energy projects facilitated by the ISA in Member Countries. This presents business opportunities for the country’s solar energy industry, and sheds light on challenges faced by it.

Financial Contribution and Sponsoring of Projects:

  • The Fifth Assembly of the ISA has approved a voluntary contribution mechanism under which Member Countries are invited to contribute to ensure the financial sustainability of the ISA. The ISA Assembly has approved contribution levels as specified below, however the mechanism has not yet been institutionalised

    1. USD 50,000 for developed Member Countries
    2. USD 25,000 for developing Member Countries, and
    3. USD 10,000 for Member Countries classified as Least Developed
      Country (LDC) or Small Island Developing State (SIDS)
    01

  • The ISA welcomes any additional contribution to its corpus fund and its general fund by its Member Countries.

    02

  • Member Countries may extend grants or concessional loans to the ISA for establishing or for supporting ongoing projects in developing and least developed Member Countries. For managing these projects, donor countries may deploy officials on secondment to the ISA Secretariat in accordance with the Secondment Policy of the ISA.

    03

Support with Governance Mechanisms

The country shall actively participate in the governance process of the ISA in compliance with the provisions of the Framework Agreement and the Rules of Procedure to the benefit of the ISA, its fellow members, and towards the achievement of the strategic objectives of the ISA.