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 The World Solar Commission
Highest-level leadership and guidance
The World Solar Commission was created in 1995 with the aim of mobilizing the highest decision-makers at the level of Heads of State and Government both from developing and industrialized countries, to convene the World Solar Summit and to launch a programme for global solar energy activities known as the World Solar Programme 1996-2005 (WSP). The World Solar Commission is composed to eighteen Heads of State and Government. These high-level personalities, who serve in their personal capacities, have pledged their support for a renewed impetus to the development and utilization of renewable sources of energy, within the framework of economic and social development and environmental protection. This political will at the highest level has been reflected in the 1996 Harare Declaration on Solar Energy and Sustainable Development.
A college of Personal Representatives designated by the members of the World Solar Commission is the working body that prepares the decisions of the Commission, in close collaboration with the Secretary-General of the Commission. UNESCO has offered to serve as the Secretariat of the
World Solar Commission and has made available the human resources of its Division of Engineering,
and Technology for that purpose. Mr. Boris Berkovski, Director of this Division, serves as Secretary-General of the World Solar Commission.
Personal Representatives (PR) have been designated by all Members of the World Solar Commission. They comprise the organ that prepares the decisions of the Commission.
The World Solar Commission successfully organized the World Solar Summit in Harare, Zimbabwe, 16-17 September 1996. The World Solar Programme 1996-2005 was approved by the World Solar Commission at its second session held on 23 June 1997, within the framework of the Special Session of the UN General Assembly, « Earth Summit + 5 ». Five global projects of universal value and almost 400 high national priority projects have been included in the WSP and 18 of them are being actually implemented with an overall budget of more then US$400,000,000. The World Solar Commission has supervised organisation of a series of business and investment meetings to enhance the WSP implementation.
The functioning of the WSP Secretariat is composed of three elements:
 Organization of meetings of Members of the World Solar Commission (WSC),
Organization of regular meetings of Personal Representatives of WSC Members, and
Functioning of the World Solar Commission Secretariat.
For the time being, the World Solar Commission Secretariat has relied on the funding mobilised by the offices of Personal Representatives and the Secretariat of UNESCO in the years 1996-2000 and fundraising organized by the WSC Secretariat.
The participation of WSC Personal Representatives (PRs) in their regular meetings is covered by themselves. On the other hand, not all Personal Representatives are in a position to finance by themselves their participation in PR regular meetings.
His Excellency Mr. Ibrahim Maïnassara Baré, President of the Republic of the Niger; His Excellency Mr. Romano Prodi, President of the Council of Ministers of the Italian Republic; His Excellency Mr. Soeharto, President of the Republic of Indonesia; His Excellency Mr. José Maria Figueres Olsen, President of the Republic of Costa Rica; His Excellency Mr. Sardar Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan; His Excellency Mr. Wasim Sajjad, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan; The Honourable Mr. Paul Keating, Prime Minister of Australia; His Excellency Mr. Franz Vranitzky, Federal Chancellor of Austria; The Honourable Mr. P.V. Narasimha Rao, Prime Minister of India; His Excellency Mr. H.D. Deve Gowda, Prime Minister of India; His Excellency Mr. Inder Kumar Gujral, Prime Minister of India; The Honourable Mr. Shimon Peres, Prime Minister of Israel, His Excellency Mr. Abdou Diouf, President of the Republic of Senegal, His Excellency Mr. Nelson Mandela, President of the Republic of South Africa, His Excellency Mr. Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, President of the Republic of Indonesia, His Excellency Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of the State of Israel, His Excellency Mr. Viktor Klima, Federal Chancellor of the Republic of Austria, His Excellency Mr. Ehud Barak Prime Minister of the State of Israel, His Excellency Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee Prime Minister of the Republic of India,
His Excellency Mr. Muhammad Rafiq Tarar President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan His Excellency Mr. Abdurrahman Wahid President of the Republic of Indonesia, His Excellency Mr. Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Echeverría President of the Republic of Costa Rica, His Excellency Mr. Thabo Mbeki President of the Republic of South Africa, His Excellency Mr. Robert Gabriel Mugabe President of the Republic of Zimbabwe
were members of the World Solar Commission when they were assuming their high functions.
Professor Boris Berkovski, former Director of the Engineering and Technology Division at UNESCO, has been serving as the Secretary-General of the World Solar Commission from its creation.
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