On the way towards an inclusive and sustainable green hydrogen transition, countries face numerous challenges: they  lack strategies, regulatory frameworks, investment incentives, know-how and more. Sound policymaking will be key to realizing green hydrogen’s potential, yet guidance on adequate measures is scarce.

Based on their institutional mandates to promote the widespread and sustainable use of clean energy worldwide for inclusive and sustainable industrialization and the global common good, UNIDO, IRENA, and IDOS have contributed their own specific expertise to co-author a policy report titled, Green hydrogen for Sustainable Industrial Development: A Policy Toolkit for Developing Countries.

This comprehensive publication is the first to encompass the entire green hydrogen value chain - including backward linkages, production and end-use - with a specific focus on developing countries. It highlights green hydrogen's transformative potential, offers strategic guidance for equitable benefits distribution, and includes detailed policy sheets that outline the policy options to this end.

The report challenges the conventional view of green hydrogen as primarily an export commodity from countries rich in renewables but lacking in industrial power. Instead, the focus is shifted to the potential of green hydrogen to drive economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social progress within these countries in order to ensure the distribution of potential benefits in the most equitable manner.

“An essential prerequisite to the global scale up of green hydrogen uptake is the development of the necessary policy and legal frameworks and coordinating international standards. Without regulatory clarity, green hydrogen projects are unable to move forward as they cannot plan or assess risk. This toolkit aims to guide policymakers in developing a regulatory environment that enables green hydrogen production,” wrote Gerd Müller, Director General of UNIDO, Francisco La Camera, Director General of IRENA and Prof. Dr. Anna-Katharina Hornidge, Director of IDOS, in their joint foreword.

The Toolkit equips policymakers with the latest strategies, challenges, and solutions for creating a local value chain around green hydrogen production. The report can be accessed from the websites of UNIDO, IRENA, and IDOS.

UNIDO’s contribution is part of the Global Programme for Hydrogen in Industry.

Contacts at UNIDO:

Smeeta Fokeer 

Petra Schwager