  A local phenomenological model that reduces to a non-local gravitational
theory giving dark energy is proposed. The non-local gravity action is known to
fit the data as well as $\Lambda$-CDM thereby demanding a more fundamental
local treatment. It is seen that the scale-invariant higher-derivative
scalar-tensor theory of gravity, which is known to be ultraviolet perturbative
renormalizable to all loops and where ghosts become innocuous, generates
non-locality at low energies. The local action comprises of two real scalar
fields coupled non-minimally with the higher-derivative gravity action. When
one of the scalar acquiring the Vacuum Expectation Value (VEV) induces
Einstein--Hilbert gravity, generates mass for fields, and gets decoupled from
system, it leaves behind a residual theory which in turn leads to a non-local
gravity generating dark energy effects.
