By Enyichukwu Enemanna
World Resources Institute (WRI) has said funding gap in Africa’s energy sector could affect green transition and deny several homes access to energy on the continent.
According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy projects attracted investments worth $382 billion globally in 2021.
Only about $13 billion, or three percent of this sum had been deployed to funding projects in Africa, an indication there is funding shortfall.
At a forum organised in the week by the WRI and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation in Nairobi, Kenya participants drawn from the private sector, government, civil society organisations within the countries in East Africa deliberated on how investors can be mobilised to support Africa’s green transition through investments.
The deputy regional director, WRI Rebekah Shirley told the forum that private sector players are reluctant to invest in this sector, a development that has created a funding gap of billions of dollars every year.
“Even in other regions of the world where energy access is still a challenge like the Southeast Asia, we don’t see funding gaps of this magnitude, why Africa?” she posed.
With an estimated 48 percent of African population having access to electricity, experts believe investment in the continent’s renewable energy sector could both accelerate the green transition efforts and connect more people to the grid.
Alex Wachira, principal secretary for the state department of energy in Kenya said that there is a list of challenges contributing to the energy gap, even in his country, which slow down economic growth in the country.
“We (the Ministry of Energy) are aware of the many challenges attributed to this, including limited incentives to attract private sector investors,” he said in a speech read by a representative.
Another challenge identified is the lack of political will for appropriate legislation and implementation of policies to incentivise private sector investment in renewable energy projects, especially in rural areas.
In Kenya, only two out of 47 counties have drafted energy plans that would give way to appropriate energy policies, deprioritising renewable energy projects at the local governments.
This, according to Eva Sawe – a senior programmes officer at the Council of Governors, is because lawmakers have not been sensitised on why renewable energy projects should be a priority.
But even with the right policies and incentives to support private sector investment in renewable energy on the continent, investors said there is a still a shortage of talent in Africa limiting the production capacity of companies investing in the sector.
“If an investor is coming into the country to do any renewable energy project, the first hurdle they will face is the lack of skilled people,” said Andrew Amadi, the chief executive of Kenya Renewable Energy Association.
