PRESS
RELEASE
Increased off-grid and mini-grid investments
could solve Africa’s electricity crisis, says Annan report
[Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire] – African governments and their
partners need to move faster to bridge the continent’s huge energy gap. That
means adopting every available solution, on and off the grid, according to a
new report from Kofi Annan’s Africa Progress Panel.
The report,Lights
Power Action: Electrifying Africa,is launched today at the African
Development Bank headquarters in Abidjan. It calls for a significant boost in
investment in a range of solutions that can solve Africa’s energy crisis as
quickly as possible.
Lights Power Actionunderlines
that the 620 million Africans without access to electricity cannot wait forgrid
expansion. Grid-connected megaprojects
such as large dams and power pools are essential to scale up national and
regional energy generation and transmission, but they are slow and expensive.Governments
must also increase investment in off-grid and mini-grid solutions, which are
cheaper and quicker to install.
“What we
are advocating is for African governments to harness every available option, in
as cost-effective and technologically efficient a manner as possible, so that
everyone is included and no one is left behind” saidKofi
Annan, chair of the Africa Progress Panel.
Of the 315 million people who will
gain access to electricity in Africa’s rural areas by 2040, it is estimatedthat
only 30 per cent will be connected to national grids.Most will be powered by off-grid
household or mini-grid systems.
Lights Power Action
is an in-depth follow up to the influential 2015 Africa Progress Report, Power People Planet: Seizing Africa’s Energy
and Climate Opportunities. It urges governments to put in place the incentives needed to
encourage greater investment in off-grid and mini-gridsystems, protect
consumers, and facilitate demand among disadvantaged groups.
More than that, governments need to foster
an environment inwhich companies can enter energy generation, transmission and
distribution markets, climb the value chain, and build the investment
partnerships that can drive growth and create jobs.
“Traditional approaches to extending the grid are no longer
viable as the main option for African countries”, Mr. Annan said. “They will
take too long and will not meet the needs of our growing economies and
societies. Instead, governments and their partners need to seize the
opportunity to re-imagine their energy futures”.
The reportdescribes the kinds of policies and investments needed tosupport
the ambitious new public and private initiatives now underway that aim to
increase energy access swiftly across Africa, especially the New Deal on Energy
for Africa, spearheaded by the African Development Bank.
“As our new report shows,
where there is good leadership, there are excellent prospects for energy
transition,” Mr. Annan said. “We know what is needed to reduce and ultimately
eliminate Africa’s energy deficit. Now we must focus on implementation. The
time for excuses is over. It’s time for action”.
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The ten-member Africa Progress Panel advocates at the highest levels for
equitable and sustainable development in Africa.
For further information, please contact:
Dan Graham, Communication Strategist
Office: 0041 22 919 75 38
Mobile: 0041 79 318 67 88
To download a copy of Lights
Power Action: Electrifying Africa, visit our website:www.africaprogresspanel.org
