SAWEA CEO
Niveshen Govender is the Chief Executive Officer at the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) and has over 12 years in the Green Economy environment in private and public sector. In his capacity as the CEO, Niveshenadvocates for a thriving wind energy sector in South Africa with local participation and beneficiation at the heart of its development. Enhancing SAWEA’s focus on Policy Advocacy and Lobbying, Niveshenrepresents the united voice of the wind energy sector and is working towards policy and regulatory certainty while achieving social, environmental, and economic impact, on behalf of the SAWEA membership.
Niveshen’s diverse knowledge base and depth of experience, which ranges from carbon management and climate change to flagship energy project implementation, as well as formulating and applying energy policy; has seen him occupy several strategic positions with his most recent being the Chief Operations Officer (COO) at the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA). This represents his passion for renewable energy and showcases his tireless dedication to advocating on behalf of members through engagement with government on various levels.
Niveshen’s notable industry achievements and contributions include the successful championing of the development and implementation of a voluntary quality mechanism, the PV GreenCard a programme based on skills development, standardization and documentation for small scale embedded generation. He continues to spearhead the development of industry led programmes- to support the just energy transition.
As a public servant, Niveshen served at the Department of Energy (now known as Department of Mineral Resources and Energy) and was responsible for the Solar sub-directorate as well as at the Gauteng Province’s Innovation Hub, leading flagship green economy projects across energy, transport, water, waste and food security sectors. On a global level contribution, Niveshen served as a board member of the Global Solar Council and now supports the Global Wind Energy Council. He is actively involved in the African Task Force sharing learning across the region. In imparting his knowledge further, Niveshenmentor’snew businesses and entrants into the renewable energy sector through various platforms.
