Publication date: 2023

Author: SEforALL

Description: This report, by Sustainable Energy for All, supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, ClimateWorks Foundation, African Climate Foundation and Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association, has assessed the potential of renewable energy in Africa and creates a roadmap for African countries to localize manufacturing. The report draws on multiple sources, including economic analysis from McKinsey & Company.

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Publication date: 28 December 2022

Author: Energy, Sustainability and Society

Description: Building on the contributions to the article collection “The Governance of Sustainable Energy Transitions in the Global South “, this editorial offers a sketch for a research agenda on transitions research with a main focus on Africa. Still being ill-defined in its concrete contours, this research agenda engages with the central themes of heterogeneity, politics, and the material basis of energy transitions.

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Publication date: 6 December 2022

Author: AIP Conference Proceedings

Description: Crop Area Integrated Photovoltaics (CAIPV) systems yield electricity and crops on the same area of land. Most CAIPV research and commercial activity over the last decade has taken place in temperate countries of the Global North; activity in Africa has been comparatively very limited. Depending on several factors, the shade from the PV arrays may cause crop yields to decrease, increase, or remain close to control. It is expected that yields of many crops would increase on sunny arid sites in Africa.

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Publication date: 9 November 2022

Author: Bloomberg Finance

Description: The ongoing global transition from high to low carbon emitting sources of energy has the potential to transform Africa: mass deployment of new, low-cost clean technologies should trigger billions in investment, expand energy access to millions, and help mitigate the worst effects of climate change. Despite the continent’s abundant natural resources that make clean power the least-cost option today, it has reaped limited benefits from the energy transition. In fact, in 2021, Africa’s clean energy investment fell to its the lowest level since 2011 – of the $434 billion invested globally to build wind, solar, and other clean power projects, only 0.6% or $2.6 billion, went to Africa.

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Publication date: 31 October 2022

Author: Springer Nature

Description: With solar and wind power generation reaching unprecedented growth rates globally, much research effort has recently gone into a comprehensive mapping of the worldwide potential of these variable renewable electricity (VRE) sources. From a perspective of energy systems analysis, the locations with the strongest resources may not necessarily be the best candidates for investment in new power plants, since the distance from existing grid and road infrastructures and the temporal variability of power generation also matter.

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Publication date: 24 October 2022

Author: Nature Energy

Description: Aligning development and climate goals means Africa’s energy systems will be based on clean energy technologies in the long term, but pathways to get there are uncertain and variable across countries. Although current debates about natural gas and renewables in Africa are heated, they largely ignore the substantial context specificity of the starting points, development objectives and uncertainties of each African country’s energy system trajectory.

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Publication date: October 2022

Author: IEA

Description: The future of Africa’s energy sector is important globally. The International Energy Agency (IEA) is actively supporting evidence-based energy policy making in African countries with the aim of achieving affordable and clean energy, in line with United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7. This includes ensuring universal access for all, promoting increased energy security and affordability, and accelerating the development of clean energy systems across Africa, through a sustainable and accelerated regional energy system transformation.

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Publication date: 26 August 2022

Author: Springer

Description: The phenomenon of deforestation is occurring globally, in different types of forests, and for various reasons. In Africa, an estimated 90 per cent of the entire continent’s population uses wood as a source energy for heating and cooking. However, the unsustainable harvesting of trees for heating energy not only contribute to forest and environmental degradation, but it is also a significant contributor to ill health, air pollution and climate change. Reducing the resulting adverse of ecological and health consequences will have to involve a mix of adopting renewable fuels and natural resource sustainable strategies.

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Publication date: 2 August 2022

Author: MDPI

Description: Water is an essential resource required for various human activities such as drinking, cooking, growing food, and personal hygiene. As a key infrastructure of public services, access to clean and safe drinking water is an essential factor for local socio-economic development. Despite various national and international efforts, water supply is often not guaranteed, especially in rural areas of Africa. Although many water resources are theoretically available in these areas, bodies of water are often contaminated with dangerous pathogens and pollutants. As a result, people, often women and children, have to travel long distances to collect water from taps and are exposed to dangers such as physical violence and accidents on their way. In this article, we present a socio-economic case study for rural development.

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Publication date: August 2022

Author: Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship

Description: The African continent continues to be massively affected by climate change, driving its countries to be ever more sensitive to vital poverty-related needs like access to energy, water, and agriculture. Social entrepreneurship is one key answer to unlock sustainable development. African countries living with extreme poverty are the most vulnerable to climate change because those two scourges overburden their population. This means that many challenges await Africa given that the continent has 9 out of the top 10 countries with the highest poverty rate in the world.

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Publication date: June 2022

Author: IEA

Description: Africa is already facing more severe climate change than most other parts of the world, despite bearing the least responsibility for the problem. With nearly one‐fifth of the world’s population today, Africa accounts for less than 3% of the world’s energy‐related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to date and has the lowest emissions per capita of any region. Africans are already disproportionately experiencing the negative effects of climate change, including water stress, reduced food production, increased frequency of extreme weather events and lower economic growth – all of which are fuelling mass migration and regional instability.

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Publication date: 8 April 2022

Author: Afrobarometer

Description: Electricity is a basic prerequisite for human development. The United Nations (UN) highlight “access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy for all” as its Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) No. 7 (United Nations Development Programme, 2019). Electrification powers the provision of resources for economic transformation and improved living conditions, especially for poor people (Blimpo & Cosgrove-Davies, 2019).

Globally, access to electricity improved significantly between 2000 and 2019, expanding coverage from 79% of the population to 90%. In sub-Saharan Africa, where basic electricity infrastructure is particularly weak, access improved from 26% to 47% over the same period (World Bank, 2022).

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Publication date: 5 April 2022

Authors: Solar Compass/Elsevier

Description: The mini-grid market in Africa is steadily growing and solar PV, wind, hydro or biomass-powered mini-grids are expected to be a major factor in the electrification of rural areas. However, mini-grid markets cannot realize their full potential as most energy regulators do not provide an appropriate answer to the simple question “What happens when the main grid arrives?”. The lack of regulatory security of tenure and potentially subsidized tariffs for main grid-sourced electricity risk stranded investments when the main grid arrives and thus threaten private sector participation and investment.

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Publication date: 2 February 2022

Author: USAID

Description: This document aims to serve as a resource for off-grid solar (OGS) companies, microfinance institutions (MFIs), and local banks (hereafter referred to together as MFIs) on providing loans for off-grid solar products in sub-Saharan Africa. The market for off-grid solar technology in this region is growing rapidly, and OGS companies and MFIs are naturally suited to helping each other enter and grow in this market. Moreover, by partnering to design and market loans for off-grid solar products, OGS companies and MFIs can help to increase access to energy, particularly for rural, low-income households, farmers, and small businesses. This document offers lessons learned from partnerships between MFIs and OGS companies, advice on gender and social inclusion, and information about piloting and scaling solar loans.

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Publication date: 2022

Author: AMDA

Description: Minigrids continue to gain traction as an integral component of the global energy ecosystem. With over 590 million Africans still living without access to electricity, major institutions such as the World Bank and the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimate that minigrids are essential to providing electricity to approximately half of all unelectrified communities in Africa. As governments revise their electrification plans, there is growing interest to mainstream minigrids, while donors and foundations continue to publicly commit funding to the industry and new businesses emerge to support the overall ecosystem. However, despite the increasing interest, scale has remained elusive. This report aims to provide clear, neutral and quantitative evidence that can support decision makers as they determine pathways to universal electrification.

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Publication date: January 2022

Author: IRENA

Description: An energy system centred on renewable energy can help resolve many of Africa’s social, economic, health and environmental challenges. A profound energy transition is not only feasible, it is essential for a climate-safe future in which sustainable development prerogatives are met. Renewables are key to overcoming energy poverty, providing needed energy services without damaging human health or ecosystems, and enabling a transformation of economies in support of development and industrialisation.

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Publication date: 2022

Authors: UNECA, RES4Africa and IRENA

Description: Under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) framework, Africa is pursuing broad-based development by addressing constraints to its long-term growth and transformation. The development vision of Africa is anchored on Agenda 2063, articulated through the Africa We Want, and the United Nations Agenda 2030. To meet these goals, by leveraging the immense potential of the continent, further bold steps are needed both in addressing barriers to growth and in adopting forwardlooking policies to create new opportunities for improving livelihoods and increasing prosperity on the continent. The infrastructure gap in Africa is among the greatest barriers to growth, impacting investment across sectors.

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Publication date: 2022

Author: Wärtsilä

Description: Despite the diversity of the African countries, the ingredients of the energy transition are the same for every nation. Renewable energy, supported by flexible balancing capacity, is the most effective way to replace inflexible generation, reduce energy costs, increase energy access, and improve reliability.

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Publication date: October 2021

Author: World Meteorological Organization

Description: The State of the Climate in Africa 2020 report provides a snapshot of climate change trends and impacts, including sea level rise and the melting of the continent’s iconic glaciers. It highlights Africa’s disproportionate vulnerability and shows how the potential benefits of investments in climate adaptation, weather and climate services and early warning systems far outweigh the costs.

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Publication date: November 2021

Authors: RES4Africa and PwC

Description: Africa’s electricity grids are characterised by infrastructural flaws, inefficiency and limited coverage, preventing universal access to electricity and hampering the continent’s development. RES4Africa and PwC present the new study "Private Sector Participation in African Grid Development", examining the phenomenon, its causes and viable solutions. The analysis is focused on ten countries (Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia).

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