World Bank, AfDB start campaign to electrify 300 million Africans

At least 300 million Africans will be provided with access to electricity from distributed renewable energy plants or grid-connected facilities by 2030 under a new bank partnership.

The initiative between the World Bank Group and the African Development Bank (AfDB) could lower by 50% the number of people in Africa living without electricity. According to the partners’ press statement, roughly 600 million Africans currently have no access to electricity.

Under the plan, the World Bank will work to connect 250 million people to electricity, with the initiative estimated to require some USD 30 billion (EUR 28.14bn) of public sector investment. It also estimates that the plan would open USD 9 billion worth of private sector investment opportunities in distributed renewable energy alone.

AFDB, meanwhile, will support an additional 50 million people.

"Electricity access is the bedrock of all development. We will need policy action from governments, financing from multilateral development banks, and private sector investment to see this through," said Ajay Banga, World Bank Group President.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.938)

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