LUSAKA, June 4 (Xinhua) -- The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), a regional economic community, launched a project on Tuesday aimed at accelerating access to energy across the eastern and southern African regions.
The Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformation initiative targets to deliver new electricity connections to 100 million people over the next seven years. The project focuses on expanding both grid and off-grid electricity connections, renewable energy solutions, clean cooking technologies and fuels.
During the launch in Lusaka, Zambia, COMESA Secretary General Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe said African countries need substantial investments to address their energy challenges. She said according to the African Development Bank's projection, about 35 billion U.S. dollars are required to achieve universal energy access in Africa by 2030.
"This is a major stumbling block that needs to be addressed through creative interventions such as this project," Kapwepwe said. She noted that around 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa still lack access to electricity, with rural populations being the hardest hit. Millions of Africans still rely on traditional energy sources such as biomass, kerosene, and diesel for cooking, lighting and heating.
The project earmarks 5 billion dollars from the International Development Association and aims to leverage an additional 10 billion dollars from other partners for investment in grid and distributed renewable energy.
Boutheina Guermazi, the World Bank director of regional integration for sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, described the project as a flagship initiative and a game changer designed to help countries provide electricity to their citizens. Ensuring access to reliable and affordable energy for all is a key element of the bank's regional strategy for Africa.
"Many of the participating countries have demonstrated unprecedented results over the past decade and are at a critical juncture in their efforts to ensure electricity access and sustainable economic development for all their citizens," Guermazi said. She emphasized the need for collaborative solutions to help rural communities lacking electricity access.
Zambian Minister of Energy Peter Kapala said the project aligns with the Zambian government's goals of improving citizens' livelihoods through increased access to sustainable energy and energy services.
"This energy access challenge is further exacerbated by the huge disproportions in the financial requirements needed for innovations and collaboration among the various actors in the energy sector," Kapala said, adding that the importance of access to sustainable energy in Zambia and the region cannot be overstated. ■
